


Myosotis

by UniversalSatan



Category: Haikyuu!!, Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Asexual Kuroko Tetsuya, Long-Distance Relationship, M/M, Minor Oikawa Tooru/Sugawara Koushi, Past Kise Ryouta/Kuroko Tetsuya, Recovered Memories, a light dusting of kyohaba, aight thats it for now bois, also the fam aomine and kagami appear for like a scene kind of thats it tho, finding?? finding, k its like amnesia but Not, kuroko is also aro, like a fling not enough to be an actual ship rip, like minor shock amnesia? its mostly just remembering stuff, mentioned bokuaka, mentioned kuroken, thats what it is not amnesia lol, there will probably be a lil daisuga, yeah theres smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-20
Updated: 2017-06-16
Packaged: 2018-09-25 22:21:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 22,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9848966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UniversalSatan/pseuds/UniversalSatan
Summary: Oikawa Tooru had to leave the university sport's festival he was attending due to the death of a family member. As he's recovering back at home, he begins to recall different memories he's had at the festival with a basketball player named Kise Ryouta. Devastated, he reflects on what he actually felt and still feels about Kise.All he needs is for just some if any way to be able to contact him again.





	1. Revival (Part I)

**Author's Note:**

> Man, I said I was going to write this last July (when i did an art for oikise week lmaoo) and.... it's already.... the end of february.... to be fair I've had killer writer's block and have been really busy soooooo
> 
> I also haven't seen knb in ages so im terribly sorry if anyone's too ooc but i wanna try and rewatch (and finish it) soon aha
> 
> but yes, finally, a long oikise fic that ive been kind of promising :)
> 
> also, at some point i think i bolded a note that just says (neko*) and the context there is i think it was like a mental pun cause neko means (if u dont know) cat in japanese but also like the uke/bottom/sub/whatever you call it in a gay relationship.

Sheets that rustled as soon as Tooru moved a muscle. Warmth that should've been uncomfortable but was actually rather pleasant and soothing at the moment. A fresh scent hanging in the air - mingling with some unfamiliar perfume that he'd never smelt before, but that smelled nice.

This is what Tooru had first encountered when he woke up that morning.

Groaning, he rolled over and away from the warmth. A rather muscular arm was draped over him, but other than the duvet covering the rest of his body, he wasn't restricted in any way. Outside of the comfort, it was rather bright, so he had to blink a few times before he could concentrate on the alarm clock on his nightstand. _7:39_. Too early.

Sighing, he rolled onto his back once again. His movement disrupted the owner of the arm's sleep, who began moving a bit in his spot and muttering something. Tooru wiggled his arms free to grab his glasses off the nightstand and struggle to put them on his face, nicking his phone as he snuggled back into the warmth of the guy's arms and duvet.

"Oicchi, too early," the man mumbled, tightening his grip around Tooru slightly and nuzzling into his side, "Ow! Bright!" Both were blinded as he tried to turn his phone on, so he struggled to put the brightness all the way down. There weren't any messages, so he almost put it down before it started buzzing.

"It's mum," Tooru whispered before realized he said it out loud.

"Aren't you going to answer it?" His voice was slightly muffled.

"Eh... yeah... don't make any noises, Kise," Tooru turned away a bit so the phone wasn't right next to his companion, "Hello? Mum?"

"Tooru-chan... you- I know you're at a college sports event but... you have to come home. It's an emergency." Her voice was rather empty, as though it was trying to restrain too much feeling. Unease was definitely not how Tooru would describe what he was beginning to feel in his stomach.

"Mama?" Kise shifted a little so his face wasn't hidden in the bed so he could take a better look at Tooru's face. His intentions were purely those of concern, but Tooru still turned away a bit further from his gaze.

"It's... it's your grandmother. You- you know she's been sick and the doctor's been saying-"

"Is she... is she...?" He didn't dare finish. His grandmother had been very ill over the past few months, and things hadn't been in good light for her.

"Tooru-chan, I'm so sorry." He could tell by her voice that there were tears running down her face. "Tooru-chan?"

"I- I'll be there as soon as I can." Tooru hung up as soon as he could move, and threw open his covers before getting out of bed. He winced as he suddenly stood up - his back and hips were sore, but he quickly shook the feeling off as much as he could before moving again.

"Eh? Oicchi-"

"I'm sorry Kise-chan, I- I have to go-"

"Eh?" Kise still seemed half-asleep, barely shifting in bed. Oikawa was throwing on his clothes so quickly that he barely put them on right, stuffing his possessions into his bag that they were currently overflowing from. Under his breath, he thanked himself for not actually taking anything out. It didn't matter if he left behind a measly toothbrush anyhow. The small, purple paper-like thing that fell out of his bag didn't matter either.

"I have to take the next train back to Miyagi as soon as I can."

" _Ehh??_ "

"I had fun last night, thank you for everything," was the last thing he said before rushing out the hotel door, leaving Kise lying alone in the hotel's queen bed.

* * *

_"Tottori, huh."_

_"I bet you wouldn't expect lots of sports things here. A sports event of all things."_

_"I heard they're really good for swimming though."_

_"Swimming?"_

_Tooru watched his two teammates bicker, wearing the same sports jacket as him. Well, they weren't bickering now, but they were bound to be in any event. Apparently they didn't play on the same teams in high school, but they still managed to have good dynamics. They had both played in Nationals multiple times, too. Tooru had heard somewhere that their high schools had training camps together. They seemed a bit more like 'I love you to the moon and back but no homo' bros that were inseparable once put together though, rather than just the casual friend you make over a few weekends you have during the summer._

_"Man, I really wish Akaashi joined the volleyball team though. He really saved my ass a few times, and I don't think I have an ass anymore now that he's not around."_

_"Bro, you still have a great ass."_

_"Bro..."_

_"And Bo, Akaashi hasn't even graduated from high school yet. He can't join a university volleyball team."_

_"I knowwww..... and what about Kenma, huh?"_

_"Kenma probably wouldn't join."_

_"Ehhh??? Really??? And you'd allow that?"_

_"He'd say he was too busy, and take up some really tedious major. He's already tired enough as it is."_

_"Well because our best setters are out of the loop-"_

_"-And out of our year-"_

_"-We were stuck with this fucker," Bo jerked his thumb towards Oikawa, who sighed and stared out the train window._

_"Don't mind, he's not half bad. He's just a bit of a_ player. _"_

_"You don't have to be so nice, Kuroo-san."_

_Oikawa decided it might've been better if he played music through his silent earbuds. Which he did. He even adjusted his scarf up for good measure._

_His team was on the way to a sports festival solely for the purpose to practice with other universities' volleyball teams. It was also a good opportunity to size up his competition, he had reasoned. His knee hadn't been bugging him either, so he could even get extra practice in._

_The train finally rolled into the station after what seemed like forever. Reluctantly, Tooru had to follow Bokuto and Kuroo as he had to share rooms with them once they got to the motel. Most of the universities rented cheaper facilities or dorms for their sports teams that could afford to go, but some students had the option of staying in hotels or motels if they had the extra expenses. Tooru had begrudgingly agreed to split costs with the scream team (he would've dubbed them the meme team, but that name was reserved for Makki and Mattsun, no matter how long it would be until he saw the two of them together again) with the deal that he'd have a guaranteed bed (for some weird reason the scream team seemed unbothered by this request)._

_Squeezing his bag out of reassurance, he went over his funds for the millionth time on what he'd spend on food and transportation. The cheap life was the smart life._

_He checked his phone out of habit, glancing at the time and if he had any messages. Even though he was barely paying attention and half asleep from the long ride, Tooru managed to follow the scream team to wherever the taxi cabs were parked. He stood a bit of a distance from them while they waited, but still kept them in his line of vision. Yawning, he rubbed his eyes underneath his glasses hard and tried not to knock them off his face._

_Tooru was suddenly shoved from behind by a bag, followed by an: "Eh, sorry about that!" He turned around to see a college student handing a sports bag to the taxi driver in front of him and then turn back to him. "I'm so sorry about that, I wasn't looking where I was going!"_

_The boy had blond hair, a handsome face, one hoop earring in his ear and headphones around his neck, and seemed pretty exhausted. He was most likely one of the students coming for the sports festival just like he was. Didn't look like volleyball, though._

_"Oh, that's fine." A bunch of girls around the area were beginning to stare at the two of them. They hadn't been making that much of a commotion, but anything could've gotten their attention. Tooru was used to having a constant fanclub at home follow him around, so maybe his effects of whatever he had there were still working here. The kid that bumped into him might've also been a possibility, as he could've passed as a model without the old hoodie he was wearing._

_"Ah good, that's good," he babbled, lazily waving goodbye before getting into his waiting taxi cab. Tooru watched him with surprising interest as he settled down inside the cab and disappeared as it drove away. He almost missed the scream team calling for him._

_"Idiot Tooru! Our cab can't wait forever!"_

_"Oh, sorry!" Moving quickly, he shook his head and fast-walked to them, dumping his bags in the trunk. His thoughts drifted away from the boy for now as he sat down inside the cab, but rather settled on what the sports festival might hold for him._

* * *

Scrolling down pointlessly through his call list, Tooru grew frustrated before clicking his phone off and throwing it across the couch, where it bounced off a cushion. Sighing, he buried himself into the cushion beside him.

He had forgotten to get Kise's number before he left.

It wasn't really his fault; his sudden need to leave was extremely valid. His grandmother had finally passed, and his whole family was grieving. They didn't get to see her very often, but she was caring and thoughtful, and every visit left Tooru and his sister waiting for her next one. Plus she made the best mochi out there, which Tooru knew he was going to miss a lot. His sister had learned though just before their grandmother died; perhaps he would ask her to show him how.

For some reason he didn't grieve that much though. There was a painful emptiness left behind, but other than that he had tried his best to drop it and walk away from the issue. Ignore his problems. Keeping them would only cause hindrances. His mother and sister were a little worse off, but finally starting to get better emotionally.

"Ah, Tooru-chan!" His sister had entered their sitting room with a new vase of flowers, and he still refrained from moving. "I made us some curry."

"Where's mum?" Tooru deadpanned.

"She's- she's sleeping again," she admitted reluctantly.

"Maki-chan... I'm not hungry."

"Onii-chan, don't be stupid, you still have to eat. You have to maintain a good diet for volleyball." Maki went over to drag her younger brother off the couch, to which he struggled against yet still fell off onto the floor groaning. Crawling his way over, he knelt under the kotatsu where a steaming bowl of curry and fresh flowers sat.

"Thank you for the meal," he mumbled, eating slowly.

If dropping depressing events from his head usually worked, then why wouldn't he forget Kise? It had already been a week, but here he was now, mildly angry that he didn't have any way to contact him. He could barely even remember what had happened between first seeing him at the train station and waking up that morning. Frustration from his grandmother's death and then leaving the sports festival early with minimal notice to his coach had been building up, maybe the realization that he didn't have Kise's number was the tipping point.

Which was ridiculous, because he's slept with plenty of different people before. Why was Kise so important?

Maybe it was because it was the first time he's done it with a guy? It was pretty chill though, and even though he was pretty sore on the train back, he definitely liked it. He may have even liked it better than with a girl-

No, no, no, no - what was he even talking about? What they had done that night was purely experimental - they might have been a little tipsy at the time. This was stupid. Kise was stupid. There was no reason why he had to reign his thoughts even though he only spent a few hours awake with him a week ago. Why was he so urgent to get his number? What would they even talk about?

"Is there something bothering you, onii-chan?" He glanced up to see his sister staring at him, concerned.

"Not really," he shrugged, taking another bite of his curry.

Maki sighed: "You know you always have your older sister to lean on if you ever need it. We're forever grateful for everything you do for Takeru."

Tooru smiled and shook his head: "I'm glad to help out with Takeru. He's fun to hang around with, and plus it's my duty as an uncle."

"But please, tell me if there's anything on your mind." He didn't answer her this time, only nodding before taking another piece of chicken.

"Thank you for the meal," he muttered quickly as he finished, getting up to put his dishes away before taking his phone again and finding his coat. The temperature was already dropping quickly, and Tooru would rather not be caught by something as unpleasant as wind that's just a hair too cold.

"Where are you going?"

"Out. I'll be back soon."

"Alright. Stay warm." Tooru nodded at his sister before closing the door behind him.

Autumn seemed to have been taking a heavy toll on his hometown. Browning leaves were threatening to catch in his hair (god forbid), and the predicted wind was biting at him enough for him to shove his hands into his coat pockets. Tooru had no idea where he was going, so he just let his legs take him where they wished. Whether he was going to agree with them for today, who would know.

It took him a stupidly long time to actually figure it out, but he soon came to realize that he was on the route to his high school. Why he'd want to go back there, he wasn't sure. Who would trust their legs on these kinds of matters anyways?

Maybe it was because of the school gym, where some of his best volleyball memories had played out. Tooru's fingers began twitching. Bringing his hands up as he was walking, he traced the lines with his eyes and imagined the feel of the ball cradled in his fingers. He missed practicing already, even though it had only been a few weeks since he had had to rush back home. Dropping them back to his sides, he watched his breath fog up he glasses slightly.

There weren't that many people outside at the time, and every once in a while a car would pass by slowly. However, there were even less people other than a few children playing when he decided to take a shortcut through a playground.

He watched a couple make their way across the playground, going around the sunken areas filled with wood chips. They chatted quietly amongst themselves in their own little cozy atmosphere. Before Oikawa's brain completely processed that their faces seemed familiar, a running child hit him in the side with the force of an elephant. So much so that Tooru actually briefly became worried for his life as he almost fell flat on his face with surprising lack of balance for a great setter.

"Sorry, Mister," the elephant cackled, running off to go torment his friends. Tooru sneered at the kid when they turned their head away, pushing up his glasses back so they were on his face properly and fixing his hair.

Watching the couple again, it seemed like they were going around the other way from where he was going. _Oh_ , he thought suddenly, _it's Sugawara-kun._ Squinting at the other person, he guessed the sturdy receiver from Karasuno, _what was his name again?_ If he could remember correctly, he could almost hear the Karasuno players shouting _Daichi_. Daichi? It was probably that guy. Sugawara-kun must have let his hair grown a little wilder since he'd last seen him to think of him as the female counterpart of his companion. The navy scarf was rather feminine too. However, Oikawa even had to admit that it suited him quite well.

Tooru continued walking to his old high school without any hesitation in his steps.

* * *

_"Where do you want to eat?"_

_"I don't know - someplace cheap?"_

_Tooru interrupted the scream team's bickering: "Somewhere cheap, please. I don't have an unlimited budget."_

_"Oh, that's right," Bokuto suddenly thought to himself, "I only have 2000 yen left."_

_"You're kidding," his counterpart gasped. Tooru rolled his eyes. "What about all the shopping we were going to do? Who am I supposed to try on and buy shoes with?"_

_"You're such a shoe hoe. You could always go with Oika-"_

_"No."_

_"Kidding." Both laughed loudly and immaturely as Tooru continued to ignore them. The two of their teasing put together was worse than anything he'd had to endure from Iwa-chan. Or maybe he was just used to that._

_"But seriously, bro - how are you going to survive with 2000 yen for the rest of the week? I can't pay for everything, you know."_

_"Don't worry, I still have a bit in my bank account."_

_"How about ramen?" Tooru piped up nonchalantly. His teammates glanced at each other and shrugged._

_"Sure, whatever," Kuroo sighed, "We'll stop at the first place we see, and if we still don't see one, we can always ask the person at the motel lobby."_

_"Sounds like a plan," Tooru hummed. He didn't join in whilst the other two began chatting again. Instead, his eyes drifted past shop display windows, waiting for a ramen place to appear._

_As his eyes passed a row of shops ahead, a door was opening to reveal none other than the kid who had bumped into him at the train station previously._ Wait, what? Him? _Tooru didn't realize that he still seemed to remember what he looked like. The kid_ did _have a handsome face though._

_It took him a second glance to figure out that whoever that kid was, was not alone. Just behind him, a much shorter, reserved person followed him. Oikawa was intrigued to notice how hard it was to actually realize the kid was there, considering the handsome guy's companion had robin's egg blue hair. He simply didn't have much of a presence at all. It was only thanks to Tooru's sharp inquisition for playing on the court that he could notice him right away._

_His gaze stayed on them lightly as they left further down the street away from them. The one handsome guy was complaining in a whiney voice, calling him '_ Kurokocchi', _while 'Kurokocchi' somehow managed to casually pet a dog that had poked its head out of his bag. Oikawa was in too much of a daze to even be surprised._

_So much in a daze, in fact, that he didn't notice the scream team trying to guide him towards a shop._

_"Oi, Bakakawa," Kuroo teased, "We found a ramen place." Tooru snapped back to reality from the oh-so-similar kind of nickname Iwa-chan would have used on him. It technically wasn't strictly reserved for Hajime to call him that, but it still felt like he held some sort of copyright papers to do so anyways. It was weird for someone else to use them._

_"Eh, oh... yeah." Kuroo had been pointing at the place where both the handsome kid and Kurokochi had just left. "Right..."_

_Tooru had started to want to talk to whoever this other sports player was, yet he seemed to be wasting his chances._

_The bell on the door of the ramen shop jingling, he walked inside with his teammates. His last glance of the other two was of them disappearing down the street._

* * *

His steps began to falter. Tooru himself was finally set on visiting his old school, however, his mind seemed to have started confusing what was happening now with the memory that had just resurfaced.

 _No_ , he told himself quickly, _no matter what you do now won't change what you didn't do then_. Kise wouldn't just appear out of the blue and... what would Kise actually do if he saw him now?

None of his thinking actually influenced his legs to just _walk away_ and _continue back to Aoba Johsai_. He was even almost _trotting_ to catch up to the two. His knee must have healed wrong. Not one part of his body was listening to him.

" _Yaho~ Refreshing-kun_ ~" That was it. The deed was done. No turning back. So much for ignoring his old rivals. The only thing he could do to not look like an idiot would be to actually follow through with his greeting. Curse that minuscule memory for making him react like this.

The couple had stopped and turned around to watch Oikawa approaching. Daichi seemed rather confused while Sugawara looked a little ticked off about the old nickname. _I'm irritated being here too_ , Tooru thought to himself, yet had to admit Refreshing-kun's reaction definitely began to start making it worth his time.

"Hey Oikawa-san, long time no see," Sugawara replied smoothly, "Do you even remember our actual names?"

"Sure. Sugawara and..." his grin faltered as he tried to remember, "... Daichi."

Sugawara's polite smile turned sickeningly sweet: "That's Sawamura to you, Tooru-chan." _Ah, of course. The players on Karasuno were much closer to Dai- Sawamura_. Still, Sugawara didn't have to use his first name like that.

Sawamura looked like some lost dog who had accidentally walked into some cat **(neko*)** fight, so he decided to try a conversation starter: "So... Oikawa-san... where have you been going for university?" His smile looked a little strained.

"I've been staying in Tokyo." His eyes stayed on Sugawara.

"Ahaha, that's pretty nice. You've been staying in volleyball?" Sawamura's conversation was beginning to become forced.

"Starting lineup setter. I have to work with some loud spikers though - they love being annoying, but somehow that doesn't stop them from being really good. I think they're really close friends too, which makes it worse." Talking about the scream team was making Tooru just that much more irritated.

"We knew some Tokyo players like that; trained with them during training camps," Sugawara piped up, "Kuroo-san certainly whipped our Tsukishima-kun into shape."

Tooru stared at the two of them: "You knew Bokuto and Kuroo?" Both seemed to have to go through mild horror flashbacks.

"Remember at the beginning of our match how I had said that we had had some interesting training leading up to then?" Sawamura strained. Oikawa briefly remembered the beginning of his last high school game when the captains shook hands. They all nodded in understandment of each other.

"I don't know whether to feel proud of you for being able to suffer through multiple consecutive matches against them and practice or to pity you."

"I pity you now that I know you have to deal with them for the rest of your university volleyball career." Sugawara's eyes had become softer, yet still with a light jokingness to them.

"Regardless of all our hardships, however," Sawamura chuckled, "Playing volleyball with the rest of Karasuno will probably be one of my favourite memories in my entire life, and I'm so glad I had the chance to experience them."

"You sound like a grandpa." Sugawara was looking up at him gently, nudging him with his shoulder. They almost looked like an elderly couple.

"Playing with Seijoh was also an incredible experience," Tooru commented.

"Why _didn't_ you go to Shiratorizawa?"

The question finished with a silence between the trio as he completely processed the question given to him by Sugawara. Why had the question been asked anyways? There was no blatant reason for it to be there, it just wasn't necessary. Tooru himself wasn't completely sure as to why he had picked Aoba Johsai of all schools.

He began slowly: "Instinct, perhaps. Setter's instinct. Maybe because I decided I needed Iwa-chan's support throughout my highschool career? He's been with me for most of my life."

"He supported you? And how could he put up with you for most of your life?"

"Please refrain from opening your mouth and ruining my little moment I was having here, Sugawara. Iwa-chan was very good to me."

"Past tense?"

"Sawamura-kun, is he always like this?"

"Suga," Sawamura cautioned his friend, barely concealing a grin.

Sugawara smiled: "Sorry, you're fun to tease."

"Anyways..." Tooru continued icily, "Were you two going anywhere? I did not mean to intrude on any sort of date or appointment you were to get to."

"Ah, not to worry, we were just on a walk," Sawamura confirmed, Sugawara leaning up against him, "Taking a little break between courses."

"I see."

"And how about you, Oikawa-san?" Sugawara asked.

"I'm... not really sure. I was just visiting home for a bit and decided to take an old route for nostalgia purposes."

"How nice."

"How much sarcasm is stuck up your ass?"

"Too much," Sawamura piped up before his companion could answer, "It's been interesting catching up with you though."

"I don't think it would be counted as catching up considering we haven't actually talked before this."

"Oh yeah," Sugawara suddenly remembered, and then turned to Sawamura to discuss something with him, "What about that thing you were saying your senpais were having?"

"Ah." Sawamura seemed a bit hesitant but continued anyhow, "Some of my senpais in the engineering department like to hold little parties and always seem to be in need of more company..." Tooru considered it, rubbing the back of his neck, so Sawamura continued: "Well... not exactly parties, rather... all of us chilling out with a few beers, maybe some karaoke? In case you haven't had any social interaction since you've come back to Miyagi."

"It's rather fun, and I'm sure the senpais would love to have you there," Sugawara added.

Tooru shrugged: "If I'm free. I probably have to get back to Tokyo soon and catch up during winter break, but I can probably go at least once."

"That's good," Sugawara beamed, "Should we exchange numbers to stay in contact until then?"

"Sounds like a plan."

"Oh," Sawamura grinned sheepishly, "I forgot my phone at home."

"Ignore him," Sugawara waved off, taking his own smartphone out, "He only has a flip phone anyhow, it'll be easier if I can take your number." Both him and Tooru switched phones and tapped their numbers and contact info in. Trading back, they hastily bid goodbyes, promising to be in contact soon.

Tooru watched the two walk across the park and around a corner. They were a lot more pleasant (with the exception of Sugawara-kun at some points) than he had expected, and he had even scored himself an outing before he left his hometown again. Maybe it would help him forget his current issues even if for a while.

Sighing, he continued on his path back to his old school. He was slightly more chilly now that he had been standing out in the wind, so he had to increase his pace a bit in the hope that his momentum would warm him up a bit.

At last, the gates and school name plate came into view. Tooru almost wanted to say it hadn't changed much, yet he had only been gone for about half a year. All of his kouhais should still be there, still be practicing volleyball 5, 6 times a week. It was a Friday, so they should've be in practice at that very moment.

His walk ended up more light-footed as he entered the school grounds as if not wanting to disturb it. He probably should've checked into the school office, even as an alumni, yet he still managed to brush his logical thinking off and head straight for the gymnasium where he had spent most of his high school days.

Everything about this place was still so fresh in his mind. The nearby clubrooms, the trees, the concrete path... yet it all felt distant now that he didn't have such ready access to it anymore. It almost made him regret not taking in everything to a much larger extent when he still had the chance to.

"Oikawa... Tooru?" Tooru glanced by the clubrooms to see Coach Irihata approaching him. He stood waiting for him, not moving a muscle.

"Yes."

"I thought I had lost a year of my life when I saw you first standing here." Coach was still quite a bit shorter than Tooru, who had somehow managed to grow yet another few inches since the end of the last season. "What are you doing back here? I thought you had gone to Tokyo to study?"

"I had to come back for a family emergency. I ended up coming back to visit Seijoh."

"And you came right to the volleyball gym?" Coach Irihata was smiling as Tooru nodded. "Have you not had a lot of practice lately?" He shook his head. His coach knew him too well.

"Where is the rest of the team? I don't think it's that late, and it doesn't really sound like there's anyone in the gym."

"I let the team off early for a little break - they have a practice game against Karasuno tomorrow and I want them to rest. You're welcome to come back to the school tomorrow and watch if you'd like; it'd be just after school." Tooru tried his hardest not to flinch at Karasuno, bitterly remembering his last Spring Interhigh defeat and Tobio's 'smug' face. Irihata laughed: "However, Yahaba and Kyotani wanted to stay a little longer and have the keys to lock up. If you want to hit a few serves, I believe there are some extra practice clothes in the clubroom," he hinted, winking.

"Thank you so much, Coach."

"It's no worry. I hope you're doing well in your new team."

"Very," he grinned, and started heading back towards the old changerooms.

The clubroom itself was still the same as ever: smelling distinctly of body odor and various colognes, the stray item of clothing thrown around, and volleyball posters peeling from the walls. There were some spare t-shirts and shorts folded neatly in a cubby, which Tooru took a larger size of both to change into. He hadn't really brought a bag of any sort, so he stuffed all of his outside clothes into a corner where hopefully no one would really find them.

Placing his folded glasses on top of his clothes, he began stretching as he moved outside and back towards the gymnasium. Everything was slightly blurry again, but he could find his way even with his eyes closed.

Figuring he wouldn't even bother stretching his legs, he opened the door cautiously and snuck inside. He didn't see his ex-teammates at first, however, he soon spotted Yahaba and Kyotani hunched over the volleyball cart and speaking quietly to each other. As soon as the gymnasium door closed, both turned around to see Tooru standing at the entrance awkwardly, unsure of how to introduce himself. Yahaba seemed surprised or in disbelief, while Kyotani scrunched up his face and turned away, yet stayed where he stood.

"Oikawa... senpai?" Yahaba squinted at Tooru as if he was the blind one.

"Yahaba-kun and Kyo-chan! Surprise seeing you here!"

"Why the hell are you back here - I thought if I stayed this year I wouldn't have to see your ugly face again," Kyotani grumbled.

"Surprise surprise motherfucker."

"Watch your profanity," Yahaba mumbled.

"Anyways, what were you two doing? A little birdie told me you two were practicing, but what exactly were you practicing here?"

"So Irihata's a little birdie now?" Kyoytani muttered under his breath.

"We were practicing but we decided to take a break for a bit," Yahaba replied smoothly, "If you'd prefer to practice on your own and abuse your knee without anyone to stop you I could give you the keys so you can lock up when you're done."

"What do you mean _abuse my knee??"_ Tooru protested, "It's been a lot better lately."

"Where's your knee brace?"

"It'll be fine. And I'll take up your offer. I thought you two were going to stay longer though."

Yahaba shrugged: "We're pretty tired now." He lifted himself off from the volleyball cart and gave Kyotani a look before heading over to the gym doors. Bending down by the side, he grabbed a water bottle and some keys, tossing them to Tooru suddenly. Tooru fumbled with them as they came flying towards his face.

"Don't lose them otherwise Irihata's going to kill me. Just put them back where they used to go; you should know better than anyone where that it," Yahaba quipped, "Also, please don't actually injure your knee - you actually have more potential now since I heard you're on the starting lineup of your uni team." He smiled gently, holding a door open as he stood in the middle of the entrance. "It was interesting seeing you once more, Oikawa-senpai," he muttered, quiet so that Tooru could barely hear. As soon as he finished speaking, Yahaba had turned around and disappeared outside. Kyotani only nodded a few times before shuffling out behind his teammate. Tooru didn't expect much else from Kyo-chan anyhow.

Tooru huffed, smiling as he went to the volleyball cart. Honestly, he wasn't sure how Yahaba knew that he was already on the startup line. He had only really told Iwa-chan, and even Mattsun and Makki in the groupchat. Thinking about it, Iwa-chan had probably stayed in at least some contact with the team - he had probably told Yahaba at some point. That or his uni coach had informed his high school coach with some form of compliment.

Throwing the keys to the side where he should remember them after, he pulled the cart towards him to size up which ball he would warm up with first. Picking out one with good pressure and that was in still relatively good shape, he held it in his hands and stepped away from the cart a bit. It felt good to have the ball back cradled in his hands after so many weeks.

Tooru threw it up in the air, and lightly tossed it to himself a few times just to get his arms moving again. Catching it, he threw it up in the air and did a simple jump serve, the ball rebounding off the wall and rolling across the gym. Not that much power was put into the serve, but he still had plenty of time to let out some steam.

Going through all the good balls in the cart, he stopped and stretched his arms quickly, walking slowly to collect all the volleyballs again. Luckily, his knee wasn't being affected to much, but he could definitely feel that it was being used.

Running over to a corner where a stray ball had rolled off to, Tooru could see a few more forgotten sports balls hiding out, including a tennis ball, a basketball, a baseball, and even a badminton birdie.

Tooru began to turn around, but stopped. The basketball didn't technically stick out of place, yet nonetheless his eyes were still drawn to it. _Why?_ Tooru hadn't even played basketball since gym class in middle school. He had played both baseball _and_ tennis more recently, yet the basketball was the one that was bugging him.

Hesitantly, he left the volleyball he was retrieving abandoned and picked up the slightly larger, tougher ball.

* * *

_The orange ball felt rough under his fingers, compared to the considerable smoothness of a volleyball. The ridges were different too, and the whole ball was heavier. It had been a surprising amount of time since Tooru had really looked at any other sports ball, since he was always touching a volleyball at every possible moment of the day._

_He turned it around in his hands as he walked back to a storage area where a cart of basketballs was parked in front_ _._ _It had been left in the gym most likely by another player or possibly even a team that could have been practicing in here earlier. The day was almost done though, which was why Tooru had the whole small gym to himself. He considered himself lucky to have the whole space to himself. Then again, this gym was in a rather secluded area, even if it was still a venue for the sports festival._

_"You don't have to put that away yet."_

_The sudden new voice made Tooru freeze up. If the gym hadn't been well lit, he would've sworn it was a ghost. Psyching himself up to see if it actually was one or not, he told himself that logically there would be other students like him who would want to practice extra._

_When he did turn around, he was thankful that it was, in fact, a student. Nevertheless, when the student moved more into the light, Tooru began to realize that he actually recognized the kid._

_"You..."_

_The kid from the train station and the ramen shop laughed sheepishly, scratching his head: "I finally got away from my team, I just wanted to practice a lil more, sorry if I am disturbing your practice."_

_"Ah, oh, no. I was just... putting this away..."_

_"So you play basketball?" the kid asked with a friendly curiosity._

_"Um, no, I don't. I play volleyball. I was just putting this away before I went back to practicing." Tooru gestured to all the stray volleyballs lying around across the gym._

_"Oh, sorry about that, I'm a bit dense," he laughed, "-That I didn't see those."_

_"Yeah, I guess." Tooru tossed him the ball, which he caught instinctively with ease. It was obvious that he had devoted a lot of his time to his sport._

_The kid peered at Tooru, frustrated: "Sorry, but you look_ really _familiar for some reason. Have we talked before?"_

_"Train station and ramen shop," he answered without skipping a beat._

_"Train station, train station... train... station... oh! You're the guy I bumped into when I was trying to get a taxi!" His expression quickly morphed from that of excited to concerned, "Which, of course, I'm still really sorry about, I didn't mean-"_

_"That's alright, it really was nothing."_

_"That's a relief. Oi, what do you mean ramen shop? I don't remember seeing you at any ramen shop..." Tooru held his breath. He hadn't realized that that had slipped out. Of course; only he had seen him at the ramen shop. A_ _dding that had almost made him sound stalker-ish._

_"Oh, er," Tooru fumbled, "Some teammates of mine and I were looking for somewhere to eat and I saw you walking out of a ramen shop with... some kid with blue hair..." The kid seemed confused until he evidently remembered the apparent occasion._

_"Kurokocchi! I think I know what you're talking about, yeah. I didn't see you at all though."_

_"Yeah, we were still walking to the shop, and you two went in the opposite direction."_

_"Oh, makes sense."_

_The two stood for a few seconds in silence before moving back to their own sports to avoid an awkward silence. Now that Tooru was actually talking to this handsome kid from before, he had no idea what he actually wanted to say. Sighing, he picked up the volleyball closest to his feet and began tossing it in the air. He could hear the other kid bouncing the basketball just a few meters away, the sound echoing around the relatively empty gym._

_"The name's Kise, by the way," the kid suddenly interrupted. Tooru caught his ball to turn at stare at the Kise, who was doing a run up to a basketball net and slammed it in, clinging at the basket ring for a second or two before letting go. Facing Tooru, Kise ran a hand through his hair and grinned: "Kise Ryouta."_

_The dramatic moment sank in for a bit as the silence began to set before Tooru had to keep himself from bursting out into laughter and muttering '_ showoff' _. Kise's stupid smile was still plastered to his face as he cocked his head in confusion as to why Tooru looked like he was having a fit of some sort._

_Recovering, he coughed a few times before properly introducing himself: "Oikawa... Oikawa Tooru. So... you play basketball?"_

_Kise managed to brighten further at the question: "Yeah, since sometime during middle school. I was a part of some sort of prodigy group in my year I think, but I'm not really the best. I try and improve every time I play though."_

_"Oh cool." Great, another prodigy._

_"I don't only focus on basketball thought. I worked part time as a model, and I still sometimes get the occasional gig if they want me where I go to uni. I also like having a good time, so I spend my free time out a lot, since it's good to be well rounded."_ Who did this kid think he was, sharing his whole life story.

_"Well that's nice that you like having a good ol time but I like practicing and becoming better that way since I guess not everyone can be a prodigy." Tooru tossed his ball in the air ran up for a powerful jump serve, smashing it into the ground about a meter away from Kise._

_"Don't be so mean," Kise pouted, "I'm allowed to have some fun. That's what 'being young' is supposed to mean - having lots of fun." There really wasn't much to argue on that, in Tooru's opinion, so he went back to hitting more serves. Kise went back to taking more shots._

_"I'm not sure about how much you know about volleyball-"_

_"I know the basics," Kise interrupted._

_"But I'm the setter. The setter has to support and hold up the whole team - the brain that sets up the whole game."_

_"I don't really get what you mean by that but okay."_

_"Basically I'm the most important person on the court."_

_"That sounds fake but okay." Admittedly, Tooru had been over-exaggerating, but he needed some sort of largely redeeming fact to fight Kise's qualities._

_He sighed: "I have been claimed before as a high achieving setter, and apparently could play for a national level-"_

_"Then why don't you?"_

_"Well, um... actually... I don't know. I never really-"_

_"Thought about it?"_

_"I have, but I'm not sure yet... if I actually want to work for this or just continue into specializing my major. Anyways, what I was saying, is that I've got published level skills that magazines were constantly bugging me about, but then of course, prodigies," Tooru's face scrunched up at the thought of Kageyama, "Come along and make you seem like a beginner still."_

_"Second character?"_

_"Shut up."_

_"So does that mean you were on magazines all the time because you're so handsome?"_

_"You're one to talk."_

_"Poster boy."_

_"Model-kun."_

_"Poster boy."_

_"Model-kun."_

_"Poster boy."_

_"I don't think we're going to get anywhere by being extremely petty. Do these even count as insults?"_

_"I'd count them as compliments." Both lapsed into silence again, the gym filled with their shoes squeaking across the polished floor._

_"Hey, Oikawacchi?"_

_"..._ Oikawacchi _...?"_

_"You made it sound like you don't get any fun in your schedule. Am I wrong?" Oikawa didn't say anything. "You know, I could try and bring you out for karaoke or something with a few of my friends before the festival's over - just that one karaoke place by Ryuugazaki."_

_"The road? The one by the 7/11?"_

_"Yeah, that one."_

_"Being completely honest here, even if I didn't want them to, my teammates might end up tagging along, is that fine?"_

_"How many?"_

_"Two technically but it feels more like four."_

_"Two's fine, it'll be like a party!"_

_"Won't that be a lot for just a karaoke?"_

_"It'll be okay if we split costs. How about... tomorrow? 8 pm? If you don't have a game of course."_

_"Will the karaoke even be open for that long?"_

_"I mean, it's on a uni campus, it_ should _be open later. Plus, I checked the hours earlier and they go until quite late." The two boys had stopped at this point, and had both ended up standing near each other, still fiddling with their sports balls._

_"... Alright," Oikawa hesitated, "It's a date."_

_"Perfect," Kise grinned._

_"We have a game right before though, so we may not be at our peak performance."_

_"And I'll probably be practicing right before. It's fine. Just come to the venue and ask for my name."_

_"Got it."_

_Kise span the ball between his hands and stopped it suddenly. He rested his stare on Oikawa before proposing: "Hey, I know we've been training mostly for our own sport, but would you want me to show you a few things in basketball?" He laughed, "Not much of a break, I know, but sometimes doing something else gives your brain a break and opens up a new perspective."_

_Tooru raised an eyebrow: "That's really insightful of you."_

_"I'm serious. C'mon, it'll be fun."_

_He shrugged, grinning: "Alright. Take it away, pretty boy."_

_Both traded balls, and took turns teaching each other little techniques. Kise didn't seem to know how to serve properly at all, and apparently Tooru was shooting the ball wrong._

_To Tooru's delight though, Kise was a quick learner, and seemed to get a quick grasp on most volleyball techniques except for receiving. It was also amusing to toss to a more inexperienced player, yet not one who was bad enough to not hit the ball. He could actually spike the ball really well, and Tooru would've had to consider him formidable opponent if he had actually trained a bit more in volleyball rather than basketball._

_As basketball was more of a one-on-one sport, Tooru was dealing against Kise more, which proved to be a lot more difficult considering their skill gap. He had gotten a little flustered when Kise heavily complimented his ball control, which he had only waved off as being a requirement as a setter. Once Kise had given a hands-on correction of stance on how to shoot properly, Tooru was able to shoot with ease, yet still found it slightly more difficult to get an accurate basket the farther away he got. The ball being heavier also must have mentally confused him, but the different type of mental strain and rapid learning really became fun._

_As all sessions like these typically go, the two easily lost track of time. Tooru hadn't laughed and joked around that much since he was a kid as he loosened up throughout the evening. He had honestly loved and felt comfortable with Kise being there and the relaxed atmosphere between them. Every little thing about Kise began to be more noticeable, and Tooru drank in everything about Kise and their little training session in the gym as they exchanged light small talk._

_They only left once a caretaker gently reminded the two that they needed to close up the gym as the boys rushed to clean up. Running out the door when the reality of how late they stayed hit them, they quickly reaffirmed their meeting the day after before rushing back to where they were staying separately._

* * *

Tooru held the ball as if it held all of his precious memories. Honestly, he was grateful that it helped bring memory back, but it had also brought back a familiar feeling he had had back then, yet strangely emptier.

Standing up, he left the volleyball forgotten behind him and started bouncing the basketball on the floor. With a sudden burst of emotional energy, he sprinted over to where the basketball team practiced and did a one-up to one of the hoops, successfully putting the ball through the net. Whether Kise would have been proud of that shot or not, that was something Tooru would never know.

What Tooru would have given to go back then and change whatever he did wrong. He couldn't even remember; was it the sudden leave after waking up in a bed with Kise? Was if the forgetting of asking for a phone number? Or possibly even losing or deleting the phone number if he had asked?

He continued practicing with the basketball, the change of pace freshening up his mind again. No matter how much he longed for that reassuring and comfortable atmosphere again, he was only met with something hollow, as if something was missing. Tooru knew he was being over-dramatic, but he didn't care. It was to be expected after everything he's had to go through lately.

Just outside the quiet gym, he could almost hear Yahaba's voice saying something along the lines of _'He's gone crazy'_ and if it was even possible perhaps the sound of Kyo-chan's laughter. No kidding; volleyball-centered Oikawa Tooru had put down his volleyball in favour of dribbling and shooting a basketball around the gym. Not only that, but he was _longing_ to see someone that he barely even knew, like some hormone-driven teenager in a cliche romance movie. Not that his kouhais knew about that part though.

Logically thinking, he was just going to have to move on. Stuff like this happened all the time: finding girls he truly liked, them breaking his heart, and some not even acknowledging him in the first place. This was yet another hurdle he had to get over soon. Thank god he had Sugawara's and Sawamura's little hang out to take his mind off of things, and possibly even the volleyball game against Karasuno. He would have to go undercover to make sure no one recognized and bothered him, but that was all part of the fun. It's not like he had that many memories he would have to re-forget with Kise anyhow.

Tooru stopped. How many did he even have in the first place? Most of the festival was still pretty foggy in his head, and as they had already been, his memories would slowly be coming back with whatever would happen to trigger them. Hell, he had no idea how many memories he had even made with Kise. The fact that he already felt really connected must have meant that there were at least a few more if not significant ones. 

It was soon after that Oikawa decided to lock up, changing back into what he was wearing and taking one last glance of his old high school. It was still a bit chilly outside, and he just managed to avoid any school staff as he was leaving the premises. 

All he really needed now was a nice, long nap in his bed after a warm cup of tea.


	2. Revival (Part II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oikawa regains more of his memories.
> 
> [Smut Warning]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im back holy shit
> 
> before anything, id like to give a huge thanks to lisa [(ryoutahkises](http://ryoutahkises.tumblr.com/) and [ironnheart)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ironnheart/pseuds/ironnheart) for supporting myosotis and myself as i was writing it!! [ahaha these have really been keeping me going so thank you so much.] she's created 2 very beautiful pieces of media for it, which you can find just below
> 
> [➳ Incredible art piece](http://ryoutahkises.tumblr.com/post/158099946567/otp-30-day-challenge-day-10-draw-your-otp)   
>  [➳ amazing playlist??????](https://open.spotify.com/user/lisackert/playlist/6bxCDhJvhzB8je8rOmFkb4)

"Tooru, honey, before you go to that game of yours at your old high school, do me a favour and stop by your sister's place and give her some food."

Tooru glanced up from his phone, watching his mum shuffle up and drop a bag of food containers on the couch beside him. She had been starting to collect herself emotionally, and Tooru's sister had already gone back to working in the flower shop that she owned just a few blocks away. Thank god it was on the way to Aoba Johsai.

"Yeah, alright. Do you need anything else while I'm out?"

"Just tell me how your team does after. I'll have some tea and sweets ready for when you're back."

He nodded, turning off his phone and standing up. Sugawara had just texted him the details for the get-together, which was going to already be the next day. Not only that, but he had arranged to get train tickets back to Tokyo the day after that, so he was finally ready to get back to his normal routine. Thank god he had managed to get notes from helpful and admittedly smitten classmates so he wouldn't fall as behind in his studies.

"I'll be leaving then," he decided, grabbing his coat and then adding, "So I'm not late."

The weather was still growing colder by day, but Tooru barely noticed as he became lost in thought on his way to his sister's shop. There wasn't even anything particular on his mind; just the occasional memory of Kise or high school volleyball that would drift him along the streets. He barely remembered how he got to his destination once he had actually arrived.

Opening the door, he was welcomed with a small tinkling bell and the aroma of dirt and moisture hitting him all at once. It was a good environment and refreshing to breathe in.

"Maki?" he called as he walked to the back, pulling down his face mask, "Mum made you all some food."

Maki poked her head out from behind a door, her messy hair tied up and dirt smeared on her apron and face. She lit up, as bright as a sunflower, and beckoned for him to come behind the desk with her to the back room.

"Thank you so much, Tooru-chan. Takeru and Kousuke are out right now, but I'm sure I can extend their thanks to you." She took the bag from his hand and set it on a table beside a few plants waiting to be potted. Tooru took the opportunity to peek around at any new plants his sister's store had in stock.

He picked up a few vegetable seed packets and scanned them, replying: "It's no issue. Mum was the one who made everything and it was on the way to the game."

His sister raised her eyebrows: "The game?"

"Seijoh is having a practice match with Karasuno. Irihata invited me."

"Ah." Tooru moved on to a few succulents, picking a smaller one up and considered taking it with him until he remembered how difficult it would be to care for it in his dorm.

"You can take anything you need," Maki interrupted his thought process. He looked up to see her pointing at him and then around the room with her pen, as she was apparently writing something in a notebook now. Probably inventory. "Do you need anything to bring to your girlfriend back in Tokyo?"

Tooru bit his lip: "Don't have a girlfriend."

"Ah, sorry. More often than not you have one, so I just thought.... Anyone else special in mind that you'd want to get something for?"

_Kise._

His breath caught for half a second, before he pushed everything back down and responded properly: "I wish." He glanced at the rose chart on the wall. "Maybe salmon roses."

Maki smiled gently: "I have a few in the back. But... desire?"

"No, I don't need them," he shook his head, "It would be impossible anyways."

"I thought you had more confidence than that. Are you sure you don't want me to wrap them up?"

"Physically impossible, not mentally. But thanks."

"Tough luck," Maki sighed, then gestured to a large pot full of small purple flowers. "You can take those back though, for mom or whoever. They've been in here forever. I don't even know how they've survived so long, but I'm pretty sure their time is almost up."

"I'll pick them up on my way back then," he paused, "And this one too." He picked up the small succulent he had been observing earlier, deciding to take the risk of parenting it back in Tokyo after all.

"Have fun at your game," she bid, escorting him to the door.

"It's not mine, just my team's." Tooru picked a leaf out of her hair, and she started giggling as he flicked it away onto the floor. "What?"

"I just remembered how when we were younger we would play with the mountain flowers and how I'd put flowers in your hair and how pretty you'd look."

"Stop embarrassing me. I'm leaving now."

"Don't deny it. You were so pretty back then, like some forest spirit."

"I'm leaving, bye," he rolled his eyes, slipping out of the shop. The door closed behind him and sealed away his sister's laughter and the earthy freshness inside.

Pulling up his face mask again, he started off to his school. He hoped he could pull off not being as noticed, as he wasn't so much in the mood for that much attention. No one seemed to recognize him with his glasses on other than Iwa-chan at the game with Karasuno vs Shiratorizawa, but the face mask was a good extra measure.

Not even a block away, he could already see a general stream of students leaking from the school's gates. School had ended, and the practice match was due to start in about half an hour. Enough time to sneak in and snag a good spot to watch the game.

Weaving between the chattering students in their uniforms, Tooru stayed relatively away from them as much as he could. Some of them glanced at him suspiciously with his mask and glasses on, and others would take second glances because they had begun to recognize the famous hotshot Oikawa Tooru. He sped up his walking pace.

Tooru was one of a few kids from other schools who were trying to spectate the practice match. The only difference between him and them was that they were accompanied by friends who actually went to Seijoh, apart from Tooru, who looked rather suspicious. That, and that he had also accidentally bumped into Coach Irihata on his way in.

"Sorry, sensei," he gasped, pulling down his face mask so Irihata could recognize him.

"Oikawa?" He peered at him. His voice brought the attention of other students around them, but they didn't dare interrupt the conversation between Oikawa Tooru and his former coach, the coach of their volleyball team.

"...Yes, that's me."

"Sorry, I didn't recognize you at first." He patted Tooru's shoulder. "You didn't have to come incognito; you're always welcome here." Tooru hesitated but refrained for explaining why he had dressed as so.

"I just came to watch the match before I had to leave back to Tokyo."

"You're going back already?"

"I have already overshared my stay at home, sensei. I would not want to trouble my family any further."

"So polite," Irihata commented. "You know, if you're feeling up to it - the boys still have a bunch of time before Karasuno even arrives - would you like to go practice with them as their senpai? I'm sure Yahaba could use some tips from you."

Tooru blinked. There was still about half an hour until Karasuno arrived, but was it even worth it? Which weighed on his priority list the most: avoiding attention from the Karasuno team and possibly anyone else or going back on the court and practicing with a team since what felt like forever? He squeezed his hands, deciding, and opened his mouth before Coach Irihata interrupted him.

"That's great, Oikawa-san. The first years will be especially excited to receive advice from you. There should be an extra change of clothes in your size in the changeroom. It will be open the entire match, so you can go back and change when you're finished."

"Ah... oh... thank you, sensei. I'll be there right away," Tooru nodded, beginning to turn towards the changerooms.

"Of course you will."

What he had gotten himself into had just begun to actually process as he was tying up an old pair of gym sneakers. Tooru sighed, placing his glasses and mask on top of his semi-folded clothes on the bench. Perhaps he does occasionally over-exaggerate the attention he actually gets, so there was the possibility that he could leave the game proud of his team and unbothered by any unforeseen incidents or issues. Stretching out his arms quickly, he grabbed a spare water bottle and jogged out to the gym, dodging future spectators of the game.

Pushing the gym door open and sliding in, Coach Irihata had already called for his boys and was discussing something with them. Tooru softly closed the door and ambled over towards where they were.

"-in about half an hour. We also have an alumni here with us- oh, here he is." Irihata caught sight of Tooru and gestured towards him: "Oikawa Tooru was our main setter last year, and is currently playing on the first lineup on his university team in Tokyo." Pretty much all the first years gazed at him in awe, while the now second and third years well known to Tooru seemed surprised but as if they had guessed it was a possibility. Tooru smirked and held up peace signs with both hands. He could see Kyo-chan out of the corner of his eye roll his eyes in an extremely irritated manner just behind a few star-struck first years.

"Hey everyone," he beamed, temporarily taking the spotlight.

"Oikawa-san here will be practicing with everyone before Karasuno arrives, and Yahaba-"

"Yes, coach," Yahaba piped up obediently.

"-You can work with Oikawa-san. I'm sure he will be able to give all of you tips on your playing," Irihara side-glanced Tooru to reaffirm what he wanted of him, "So please welcome him back into the team."

"Thank you for working with us," the team chanted, and dispersed onto the court.

Time passed quickly once they got into a rhythm of practicing. Most of the time they stayed in the routine of passing it to one of the two setters, who then set it back to the spikers, to which the receivers on the other side controlled the ball and brought it back. Every once in a while, Tooru would comment on Yahaba's setting, and to the occasional first year or second year on their technique, all who had seemed thankfully grateful for his well-meant advice.

Just a few minutes before Karasuno was due to arrive, they had split up to practice their serves on both sides of the court. Yahaba criticized how Tooru had forgotten to put on his knee brace again, and then Kyo-chan (not so affectionately) nicknamed him 'old man' when he was complaining that his back was sore instead of his knee. A lot of the first years looked terrified that they even had the _audacity_ to tease this volleyball idol.

"This is why you shouldn't be playing here anymore, oji-san," Kyoutani called before serving a ball that landed about a foot away from Tooru. Tooru ignored him and instead went back to giving a few pointers to some players on their jump serves.

Stretching on the side, he drank from his water bottle while he watched Kunimi and Kindaichi banter while tossing a ball between each other to stay warm. All of the players had improved considerably since he was last there, and Tooru felt something akin to pride for his team. All he could hope for was that he wasn't too far behind for when he finally started practicing again with his university team.

Karasuno was due to arrive any minute now, and he was already attempting to escape before they arrived. Coach Irihata was speaking with him and thanking him for coming by, but Tooru was barely paying attention.

"Thank you for letting me play," he announced suddenly, standing up.

"Thank you for playing with us," the rest of the team immediately chanted back at him respectfully, bowing. Tooru waved as he left, slipping away.

Just as he was trying to jog off to the changerooms, he saw Karasuno approaching the gym, their coaches and new captains at the front. Kageyama and Hinata came into view right as he rounded a corner, and Tooru could've sworn he had made eye contact with Kageyama just before he disappeared.

"Oi, Oikawa-senpai?" Kageyama called, and Tooru walked faster.

"Kageyama, you airhead, Oikawa doesn't go here anymore," Hinata commented, their voices growing distant.

"Stupid, I know that. I swore I saw him though."

"Stupid."

Tooru closed the door to the changeroom behind him and let out a deep breath. Even he realized he was being immature by still trying to avoid them just because he lost his last match of high school. It was still a big deal for him though, and he let himself wade in his immaturity mostly because his emotional plate was already full enough as it was. Let him be childish when he was already dealing with his grandmother's death, catching up with his studies, forgetting Kise...

He pulled down his shirt roughly and grabbed his coat, zipping it up and quickly fumbling with the buttons. It's not like he wanted to forget Kise, but it would be easier to function normally if he did. For example, he wouldn't be sitting here with a sinking feeling filled with thoughts of someone he only saw a while ago now. That in itself was almost immature. Tooru still had a long way to go before he was a proper and mature adult that was part of the working society.

Shoving his glasses on and fitting his mask back on his face, he left the room how he had found it and went to go find a spot to watch the game. The balcony was one of the best spots to spectate the game, but it was usually the area filled with the most girls. Luckily, Tooru found a nice relatively isolated spot that was perfect to easily watch the gameplay.

The game had supposedly just started, as both of the teams had yet to gain any points. Karasuno's team had expanded just a little, but so far only what Tooru thought were the veterans were playing. It seemed like they had gained some hopeful new first-years though.

It wasn't that he was tired, but Tooru's thoughts still drifted off as he watched the shouting boys race across the court and the ball float from side to side. Resting his chin on his hands on the railing, his eyes glazed over as he watched his school score a point.

* * *

_"Of course it's not too early; Coach said to be ready half an hour before the game," Tooru consoled his complaining teammates, who had to be forcibly removed from their Osu session on Bokuto's fossilized laptop, "Plus I think there's some basketball playing in the West gyms - we can watch that."_

_"You know," Kuroo commented, "I probably would have become a basketball_ star _if I hadn't laid my eyes on a volleyball. It was almost like destiny..."_

_"You could have just waited until we beat our record," Bokuto whined._

_"I've heard the Softcore Nightmare Street-"_

_"Nightcore Rockefeller Street," the scream team simultaneously corrected him._

_"Whatever, I don't care," Tooru continued, "I've heard it one too many times, and if you guys don't use earbuds next time you play that you'll be glad to have reason to get Bokuto a new laptop." Bokuto opened his mouth to retort, but Tooru went on: "Look, we're already here. And stop complaining, I already promised I'd bring you along to karaoke with that friend of mine after the game."_

_"What do you mean friend? You've met him once," Kuroo teased. Tooru decided not to answer as they entered the gym, and ended up heading towards the spectator area for the West gyms considering there was still about an hour before their game began._

_Entering the arena, they could see two courts set up, each with a game currently playing. The one closest to where they were had the majority of the spectators, and you could tell by even a glance it was because of the quality of the teams. Both the blue team and the yellow team had extremely skilled players, and were neck in neck in points. Tooru didn't know much about basketball, but they seemed to be starting their last quarter. All three moved off to some free seats to watch that game._

_Carefully studying the players, he watched their movements and tried to remember what Kise had taught him in the practice gym and to what extent these players were putting that technique into effect. The one blond kid on the blue team especially caught his eye, as he was probably one of the youngest playing out yet still matched and perhaps surpassed some of the other player's ability._

_Tooru stood up suddenly and gripped the railing tightly with his hands, leaning over the balcony. That face - to him it was unforgettable. It was definitely the Kise Ryouta he had seen yesterday, but this time with a team jersey on and his face full of concentration. It was a different type of concentration to what he had seen the day before; rather than that of learning but of thinking and strategizing. This didn't fail to keep his face as handsome as it already was, and in itself also had its own beauty and grace with the way he handled the ball and moved between the players._

_Watching Kise pass to a teammate, Tooru relaxed against the railing. Kise was much different in-game than when he was casually practicing with Tooru there. His skill easily matched most of his senpais', and he spectated in amazement as he saw Kise flawlessly copy what he could tell was a taxing and ambitious move from a player on the other team. Tooru could only imagine what Kise would be like in a few years._

_Kise was also incredibly in shape, yet not too bulky. His skin was glistening from sweat to the point Tooru could just barely see it from where he stood, which almost made him glow in his game. Tooru watched in awe as his demeanor immediately changed as he spoke friendly to a fellow teammate._

_"Did you find a hot guy?" Kuroo joked from behind. Tooru whipped his head around and saw them both lounging in the stand seats._

_"Fuck off - it's that friend I was talking about earlier. Kise. The one we're supposed to be going to karaoke with later," he continued, turning back to the game._

_"Which one is he?"_

_Tooru pointed: "Number 7... blue team."_

_"Not bad," Bokuto piped up, "He's pretty handsome. Well done." His comment received a nice kick in the shin from Tooru, to which the scream team started laughing, Bokuto more in pain than anything else._

_"We should go, we need the extra time to change," Kuroo announced, standing up._

_"Wait, what?" Tooru turned back around suddenly, "We still have time, don't we?"_

_"While you've been busy watching dream boy over there, time has actually been passing. Sorry, sweetie," Kuroo poked him in the pack, gesturing for him to come along with them._

_"His game is almost over anyways, look," Bokuto pointed out._

_Tooru huffed: "Alright. I didn't mean anything by that, I just thought it wasn't time to go yet."_

_"Sure sweatie."_

_Sports bags on their shoulders, they navigated their way back to the main floor to find where their change rooms were. As they were leaving the stands, they had heard the game buzzer go off, and one of the teams cheering loudly._

_Tooru scanned the crowd vaguely as Kuroo asked a staff where they needed to go. It wasn't that Tooru was looking for Kise or anything, as he was still going to meet with him after his game. Just the idea of being able to catch sight of him again elated him._

_Sure enough, the whole blue team emerged from the gym doors, chatting loudly. The yellow team filed out from doors farther down, mixing into the crowd to go to their change rooms. Tooru quickly looked for Kise within the mob of blues, trying to not look too desperate. Luckily, he spotted the yellow mop of hair, but decided to just stay and watch after contemplating going over and saying hi. He glanced back to see Bokuto nodding with Kuroo on whatever the staff was saying._

_"Oikawacchi! I didn't know you were here!" Tooru whipped his head back to the front to see Kise waving and running up, easy to see as he was a head taller than most of the people in the area. Stepping ahead, Tooru quickly checked back behind him to see the scream team still trying to confirm something with the staff._

_"Kise... long time no see," he joked, smiling awkwardly and fumbling with his sports bag._

_Kise beamed: "Are you here for that game you were talking about yesterday? Did you happen to watch my game by any chance?" His after-game glow gave out an almost overwhelming presence as he seemed almost ready to jump out of his skin in excitement. Tooru noted rather affectionately how he was a bit like some sort of golden retriever puppy._

_"Yeah, that game should be starting in about half an hour," Tooru replied, "And yes, I did actually manage to catch your game." Kise was staring at him expectantly. "Um, I couldn't help but notice, but you were one of the best players on the court... at least in my opinion."_

_"Really?"_

_"Yeah! As you could probably tell from yesterday, I don't really know that much about basketball... but that one thing you did! Where you copied that other player! How is that even possible, didn't you just learn that?"_

_"Yeah," Kise gushed, "That's been a special move of mine since middle school. Do you have any cool moves for volleyball? Or can you even have special moves in volleyball?"_

_"Oikawa-san has a killer serve that's one of the best in the entire country, but you also have to watch out for his killer ass," Kuroo interrupted them, patting Tooru roughly on the back. Tooru grew momentarily red before elbowing him in the chest._

_"Oh, is that so?" Kise raised his eyebrows._

_"Oh, um, Kise, these are Kuroo Tetsurou and Bokuto Koutarou- my teammates. Also the ones that will probably be coming with me to karaoke later... Kuroo, Bokuto, this is my, um, friend, Kise Ryouta," Tooru hastily introduced, gesturing._

_"Kuroo, this guy has the same voice as me," Bokuto laughed, pointing at Kise._

_"Yeah bro, you're just a louder version of him."_

_"Maybe if I talked loudly you wouldn't be able to tell the two of us apart," Kise joked along. Tooru had a bad feeling that this would actually become an issue at some point._

_"We figured out where we're supposed to be going though, at any event," Kuroo spoke up, "We should already be in the change room by now."_

_"It was nice being able to talk to you between our games," Tooru turned back to face Kise completely, "If... if you had time or were curious, our game should be in the C gym on the East side of the facility. Red team - unless we have to change to our white jerseys." Kise reached over and pinched some of the red fabric of Tooru's team jacket sleeve with two fingers before letting go and setting off back to his own team, waving._

_"I'll look out for you. I hope I gave you some before-game inspiration," he laughed before completely turning around to look for his teammates._

_"I approve of him," Bokuto announced mockingly like a father, to which Tooru shoved him again._

_"Don't be too harsh on him, Bo - his girlfriend just broke up with him," Kuroo reminded him. It wasn't a lie, but Tooru hadn't been affected by it that much. She was supposed to be relatively temporary in the first place._

_Luckily they didn't get scolded too much by their coach once they did arrive, but then again, they weren't that late. Tooru concentrated on remembering technique that he learned recently while warming up and stretching and stayed relatively focused on his upcoming game._

_Going onto the court, he continued to stretch as he watched both of the teams playing before them desperately fight to keep the ball in the air. This was obviously going to be a win for the team opposite him, which was evident once the ball touched down on the side closest to him, the whistle signaling their game's end. Tooru mostly couldn't wait until it was their time on the court._

_Grabbing a ball, he started passing and setting it with the other setter on his team. Not completely paying attention, Tooru scanned the stands and crowd in case Kise_ had _decided to come watch. And there he was, closest to his side in a spot easy for Tooru to glance at him, leaning over the balcony railings and chatting with a teammate beside him. Tooru went back to his passing before he could make any silly or embarrassing mistakes._

_During the warm-up itself, Tooru tried his hardest not to show off, but damn it he caught himself playing with a little extra flamboyance than usual. He had to be careful not to overdo it though, as he never demonstrated his full power to the other team while warming up. This team seemed challenging enough, but not enough that his team would lose, so hopefully Kise would be able to witness and realize the talent and potential Tooru had in store._

_No matter; once the game was about to start, Tooru had been left to serve the ball to get it rolling. His first try was rather impressive, as it already gave them a point, but it wasn't anything over the top. While he was waiting to receive the ball back in his hands again, he glanced over to where Kise was. He could see Kise pointing at him for a friend beside him, both in awe. With his confidence refreshed, he threw the ball up into the air and started the game again, running onto the court and into the gameplay._

_Nothing made him feel more alive than playing volleyball at his peak performance with Kise spectating from the stands in awe._

_Filled with a pleasing warmth, his moves were fluid and smooth as he placed himself to set the ball perfectly to the spiker in front of him._

* * *

Tooru's hands stung and a volleyball bounced hard off the gym floor beneath him before he processed what had just happened.

Kyo-chan had spiked a ball so hard that it had bounced off the floor all the way up to where Tooru was, who had reflexively pushed it away back onto the court. He stepped back so that no attention was brought to him as he fixed his glasses, moving his stinging hands.

That wasn't the only thing that had happened though. He had gotten another memory back again. Whatever was happening, he could feel it was getting closer and closer to when he woke up. What if they just never came back, and that was it? All of these memories were coming back by chance anyways - maybe he would just have to live with the distant and incomplete memory of Kise for the rest of his life.

He rested his arms back on the balcony and watched the now second-year Kageyama and Hinata duo score a point.

* * *

_Where he was was not a question that came to mind. There weren't many questions that were coming to mind, in fact. It was like he already partially understood in the back of his head._

_That was probably because this was a dream._

_His body was draped in blue flower petals. They were very tiny, and every once in a while he'd come across a full flower. The flower itself wasn't that much bigger. In fact, these were probably all just the whole flowers themselves, but Tooru didn't look any closer, because that's just not what you do in dreams._

_He looked up, and saw Kise in front of him. It was interesting how he hadn't processed he was there before, as he was somewhere in between first person and third person while spectating the dream, depending on what he thought of. Kise was also covered in these flowers, but somehow, Tooru almost seemed like the source of them._

_Tooru reached out to Kise. He couldn't see his face, but he could feel in his chest or conscious that he wanted to be with him, to be near him, to touch him, to talk to him. Anything to interact with him in some way._

_There wasn't a black space anymore where they were placed previously. Instead, they were in some sort of town on a street. It felt very familiar to Tooru, and he could've easily put a name to it, but if he woke up he would know for certain that this was definitely not how it looked. The new space hadn't even 'appeared' either. It was just... there... as if something had happened between that Tooru had already forgotten about._

_Kise was walking down this street, going somewhere. Tooru was trying to catch up, but his legs would not move faster if he tried. He kept tail on Kise, winding down an alley. The space felt smaller, like there was nowhere else to go and trapped in one setting in the dream, and yet it still felt like Kise was somehow going to escape. That Tooru was somehow going to lose him._

_Tooru didn't remember how it ended or even how the dream began when he woke up. This was as per usual, however, as it was difficult enough to even remember his dreams in the first place. What was different than usual, however, was the tight feeling restricting his chest and an angry tear that had leaked out onto his pillow._

* * *

The setting sun drew long shadows from the buildings around him, and Tooru's own disappeared into a larger one as he rounded a corner. It wasn't that late yet, but the days were already beginning to grow shorter.

There would most likely be drinks there, so Tooru had prepared accordingly. Hopefully, he would be able to get away with not having too much, as having a hangover on his way back to uni was not preferable. Honestly, he would probably be sleeping most of the way anyhow, so perhaps it didn't matter either way.

Double checking the address on the small house in front of him, he stepped up to the door and rang the doorbell, listening to the padding of feet and distant voices inside. It opened, revealing the shining face of Sugawara.

"Oikawa-san! Perfect! We're just in the living room, if you don't mind," Sugawara ushered him in, leading him further into the house. The living room had a few couches and a television, and sitting around were Sawamura and about 3 other guys. They were currently all trying to play some sort of mulitplayer video game that apparently involved a lot of shouting.

"Hey guys, this is the Oikawa Tooru Daichi was telling you about."

"Hey," one of the guys commented, glancing up briefly, "There's snacks on the table along with a few drinks; help yourself. We'll probably get some karaoke set up after this." Tooru nodded, heading over and helping himself to a drink before settling down on a free couch, watching their characters move around on the screen.

Not long after, the doorbell rang again, and Sugawara rushed up to go answer it. A few seconds later, two older guys appeared in the room, loudly stating their greetings to everyone else present and setting down a few more cartons of beer beside the coffee table. Tooru eyed them warily before shaking one of the newcomer's hands, realizing that he probably wasn't going to come out of this occasion sober.

Tooru grabbed his drink and took a sip.

* * *

_Tooru placed his drink down on the table._

_There were about 5 other people in the room other than the scream team and himself. Kise was sitting beside him, and the scream team on his other side. Across from him was the blue-haired kid Tooru had seen with Kise before - officially known as Kuroko - and a senpai from Kise's team, if he could remember correctly, who was named Kenichi. Beside Kuroko, two guys - Kagami and Aomine? - were animatedly chatting with Bokuto and Kuroo, discussing which songs they were going to pick yet not actually singing anything yet._

_"You really brought a lot of people," Tooru commented vaguely to Kise, whom both of which glanced over at the four louder ones beside them. They shouldn't have been drunk on what they had already taken in, yet that half of the room he was on still was like a graveyard compared to them._

_"Don't mind them," he laughed, "If you said that Kuroo- and Bokuto-kun were the equivalent of four people, there's like 8 people on that side of the room."_

_"More like a whole jet engine."_

_"Possibly," Kise giggled, to which Tooru felt oddly proud of._

_Suddenly, Kuroo and Aomine had gotten up and were heading to the stage area of the room, microphones in hand. Music began to play, and they started singing loudly and over-exaggeratedly to each other, almost in competition. Bokuto and Kagami were cheering loudly, waiting for their turn next._

_"Are you going to sing something?" Kise murmured, nudging at Tooru's side gently._

_"Haven't drunk enough yet," Tooru mumbled into his glass._

_"You need to be drunk to sing?"_

_"I sing all the time. I just need to be relaxed enough to keep up the competition with them."_

_"Fair point."_

_"Are you going to sing anything then?"_

_"Yeah, probably." He stared up at the ceiling in thought, resting his chin against his fist, his golden eyes twinkling. "Maybe an English song; I'm pretty good at those."_

_"Yeah?"_

_"Yeah."_

_Kuroo and Aomine returned to their seats, to which Kenichi rose up and went to sing some vocaloid song, Kagami and Aomine laughing at him._

_"Oi, Kise, do you have a favourite anime?" Bokuto spoke loudly over the music, leaning over Tooru._

_"Bokuto, Kenichi-san is singing a vocaloid song," Tooru told him bluntly._

_"Yeah? So?"_

_"Hm... I don't really know. Slam Dunk, maybe?" Kise answered loudly, sounding way too similar to Bokuto than Tooru would like, "What about you?"_

_"I only watch quality animes."_

_"Yeah right," Tooru scoffed, "The two of you only watch trash."_

_"Tooru!" Kuroo gasped, leaning over Bokuto, "Did you just call Love Live!_ trash? _"_

_"Yeah. And what about you, Bokuto? Is your favourite anime Naruto or something?"_

_"Actually, yeah."_

_"I can't believe you two," Tooru sighed, Kise watching the three of them bemusedly._

_"So? What great animes has the Great King Oikawa Tooru been watching?"_

_"I prefer classics like Neon Genesis Evangelion."_

_"I bet you only watched it for the opening," Kuroo smirked before getting up to sing something else._

_"Rude, jeez." Tooru took another swig of his drink._

_"Is he right?" Kise prodded innocently. His cheeks were beginning to pinken with the alcohol._

_"No! Of course not!"_

_"What do you like about it then?"_

_"Hmm... the sci-fi? The alien angel things are really cool. I like the concepts too."_

_"Going all sciencey? Is there any romance in it?"_

_Tooru paused: "Um, well... I think so... I'm pretty sure Shinji has a boyfriend at some point?" He stopped abruptly. It had spilled out since he wasn't watching his wording, but he still wasn't sure whether or not that topic was taboo around this crowd._

_"Oh, really?" Kise seemed dazed, but not reacting negatively towards it._

_"Um, yeah, I don't want to give any spoilers but I'm pretty sure he does?"_

_"I'll have to put it on my list."_

_"You're not bothered by people who are like... that?" he continued talking for some reason, stopping only when he grabbed himself another drink and sipped from that._

_"Hmm, you don't seem to be either though," Kise grinned lazily, "I would hope not, at least, as I probably am."_

_"Like that?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"Oh." They watched Bokuto go up to sing something for a few seconds._

_"Well, I'm not really sure," Kise went on._

_"Nn?" Kise had turned around completely to face Tooru. His cheeks were definitely flushed by now from the alcohol, which didn't help from the warm room and half-full cup in his hand._

_"Yeah, well, I've had plenty of girlfriends before, but I didn't really_ feel _anything that much with them, do you know what I mean?" Kise gestured wildly with his hands._

_"Um, maybe?" Tooru gazed at him, interested in what he had to say, "You seem like you'd be popular with the girls though."_

_"Yeah, well, that's where the girlfriends came from." He peered at Tooru, squinting: "You got a really handsome face though, Oikawacchi, you probably get plenty as well." Tooru became subconscious of his face, suddenly rubbing his nose to hide his blush._

_"So, um, girls didn't work?" he tried to bring the subject off him._

_"Oh, yeah," Kise momentarily grew lost in thought,"So then, one day, I had this crazy revelation that maybe I liked Kurokocchi more than I thought," he pointed to Kuroko across the table, who was listening to Kenichi ramble on about something or another, "And thought, 'why not try asking him out?', and did and-"_

_"Wait, you're dating Kuroko-kun?" Tooru interrupted him, deflating a little bit._

_"Hm? What, no!" Kise laughed, bumping him lightly with his fist, "Let me finish. Anyways, he said yes-"_

_"So you are?"_

_"Sh, sh, no," he waved his hand in front of Tooru's face, "I said let me finish. Anyways, we did start going out - back in high school I think, last year probably. Haha, before, I had always joked how he had broken up with me when he wouldn't admit we were best friends, but it was even funnier when we were actually dating. No one knew though, I don't think. It was fun though and I really felt more towards him than any girl I've dated," he gushed, staring off god knows where._

_"So why did you say you aren't dating him?"_

_"Well... I could tell he was just being nice but sometimes I could feel he didn't feel as strongly as I did," Kise's eyes landed on Kuroko, who was eating something now._

_"So he was still straight?"_

_"He probably had even less interest in girls actually," Kise admitted, looking back at Tooru._

_"Did you guys ever do it?"_

_"Yeah, once," Kise laughed, drinking._

_"How was it?"_

_"I liked it a lot."_

_"And Kuroko's opnion?"_

_"I didn't feel that much either way." Both jumped in their seats, as they had failed to notice Kuroko watching them and join the conversation._

_"Ah, sorry for talking behind your back, Kurokocchi," Kise mumbled._

_"It's fine." Kuroko looked like he could care less anyhow. "I was listening. I broke up with Kise because I couldn't feel anything towards him and continuing our relationship would not benefit either of us," he directed to Tooru._

_"He broke my heart," Kise fake cried on Tooru's shoulder, leaning completely up against him. Tooru suddenly become more aware of his surroundings, and noticed that he was controlling even his own breathing. Kise didn't move for a bit until he got up and abruptly left the conversation to go sing a karaoke number._

_"I didn't mean to break his heart," Kuroko assured, staring quizzically at Tooru, "It's not my fault I'm like this I suppose."_

_"I guess it's not anyone's fault how they are," Tooru mumbled, watching Kise sing into the microphone on the stage, almost tripping over his own feet as he tried to dance. Cracking up, he tried to recover to sing out the next vocal bit of his song._

_"So you're not interested in anyone?" Tooru asked, still wary of Kise onstage._

_"I'd rather not. There's much better things I can spend my time doing."_

_"I guess if you look at it that way," Tooru trailed off._

_Kuroko continued to eye him, finally stating: "You'll do fine." He twisted around on his chair to talk to Kagami about something before Tooru had the chance to respond._

_"Oi, Kuroo, can you pass the song list?"_

_"Yeah sure... are you finally going to sing something?"_

_"Yeah." He took it, carefully selecting his song of choice. "Hey Kuroo, want to do a duet with me?"_

_"Yeah sure. What song- wait... I thought you said Love Live! was trash..."_

_"Don't you know?" he stood up as Kise's song ended, going up to the stage, "That I'm trash?"_

_Kuroo smirked: "I hate you."_

_"Thanks."_

_The music started playing, and through a series of nods both decided who was singing what. Aomine was at the table drinking something and going on about how he was pretty sure one of his favourite idols had sung this exact piece before, and Bokuto was cheering on Kuroo and Oikawa and their falsetto voices. Oikawa took advantage that he was at the very least tipsy to throw in a wink or two to Kise as he sang, pulling it off as some idol move. Maybe it was his imagination, but once he could have sworn he saw Kise blow a kiss back at him._

_With his mood that could only be described as bubbly, Tooru slid back to his spot beside Kise. He lay against him sighing, saying he was tired from singing. Almost as if it was natural, Kise wrapped an arm around Tooru's waist to secure him where he was. They both relaxed against each other, everything else somewhat hazy except for the other's presence. Tooru felt warm, but he couldn't tell if it was the alcohol doing that to him or just Kise being beside him._

_"You know, it felt really good that one time," Kise commented casually as if he was mentioning the weather. He rubbed circles with his thumb into Tooru's side._

_"What?" Tooru moved his head slightly so he could look up to Kise._

_"Gay sex."_

_"Oh." Tooru nuzzled back into his shoulder. His voice came out slightly muffled on Kise's sleeve: "What did it feel like?"_

_"Are you curious?"_

_"Hn."_

_"Wanna leave early and head to a hotel?" Kise's thumb had stopped._

_Tooru refrained from moving completely. He could hear Bokuto singing karaoke, he could hear the sound of glasses being placed back on the table, he could hear Kenichi talking to Kuroko barely over the music, he could hear Kuroo laughing over something trivial, he could hear Kise breathing right beside him. Most of all, however, he could hear his heartbeat right up in his ears, egging him on._

_While part of him wanted to say that he was straight because he liked girls, another part of him argued that he couldn't say anything as he hadn't had the opportunity to date any guys. And not going to lie, but if he was going to date someone, it was definitely going to be Kise. Not even date, but just sleeping together seemed like something he could opt to._

_Judging by how he was already reacting to the situation physically at this point almost made Tooru look foreword to what could come. Even just thinking about it in detail made him more excited than ever._

_"Yeah, I'd like that." He couldn't stop grinning, so he buried his face into Kise's arm even more. "Just let me have a bit more to drink."_

* * *

Everyone at this point was completely drunk and aware that they were. The one senpai Hikari was passed out on one of the couches, while Sawamura and the rest of the senpais were still somehow playing some drinking game.

Tooru was sitting on one of the available couches with - surprisingly - Sugawara's head on his lap. Sugawara was ranting on about something about Daichi, and looking rather bitter about whatever he was speaking about.

"Want to go take a breath outside?" Sugawara stated suddenly, abruptly sitting up.

"Er, yeah, sure," Tooru mumbled, surprised. They both got up and grabbed their coats, slipping out of the warm house.

The air was fresh and cool and felt good on his skin. Tooru could almost see the stars if he tried, just peeking up above the mountain near their town.

"Sorry I'm ranting so much I just need to get it off my chest," Suga sighed, "But it's not like it's going to happen, Dai-chan being straight and all."

"Wait, what?" Tooru turned around to see him leaning against the front door.

"Were you not listening?" he peered back at him, "Are you going to beat my ass for being gay or something?"

"Oh, um, no, I just didn't realize... you too..."

"What do you mean by _'you too'_?"

"Er, well..."

"I've been ranting - _whether you've been listening or not_ \- all night about how gay I am for Daichi, so don't stop explaining now."

"I met someone a while ago..." Tooru rubbed the back of his neck, starting of rather timidly. He hadn't really told anyone about his situation with Kise yet in the full.

"Oh?"

"Yeah, but it was one night, and I haven't seen him since. Not like I can, anyways; I don't have any of his contact information."

"How long ago was this?"

"A few months ago?"

"Damn. An you're still hung over it?"

"I guess." They shared a few beats of silence. "I thought I was straight."

"Haven't we all," Sugawara laughed, taking a deep breath as he continued to watch the sky, "My old boyfriend would have been smoking out here by now. I'd watch the smoke disappear into the dark."

"Do you like smoking?"

"No, not really. It's just funny how fleeting the smoke itself lasts until you need more."

"Boyfriend... I thought you said you had liked Daichi for ages?"

"So you were listening?" Sugawara was smiling, but it wasn't reaching his eyes. He popped open another can of beer and took a sip before speaking. "Just because I have an unrequited love doesn't mean I still can't have relationships."

"Oh."

"Hey, speaking of, wanna have sex?"

"What?"

"I said do you want to have sex with me?"

"Um..."

"I dunno about you, but I usually enjoy the company of someone else to forget about Daichi. Plus it's not like you aren't attractive."

"Are you calling me mediocre?"

"No. I would definitely date you if you weren't leaving back to Tokyo tomorrow."

Tooru quickly sized up his opportunities. It's not like he would be completely against sleeping with Sugawara. In all honesty, it would actually probably be quite refreshing. What the hell; he was drunk and mourning anyways.

"My house is also empty and just down the street-"

"Yeah, why not," Tooru smiled, gesturing for Sugawara to lead the way. Suga nodded and grabbed Tooru's jacket sleeve, heading off back to his place.

* * *

_Their hotel room door slammed shut as Kise pushed Tooru up against the door. Their lips collided against each other, desperate and needy to feel the other. Tooru heard the click of the lock behind him as Kise's hands slid down to his waist. His own hands had crawled up to Kise's head and was cradling it, pulling him even closer than he already was._

_Parting momentarily, they leaned against each other's foreheads, catching their breath and grinning, giggling, and gazing at each other's eyes. They were too caught up in each other to notice the room around them, yet somehow Tooru managed to lead them to the bed, throwing his bag down to the side._

_Pushing Kise down, he climbed on top of him, only to be pulled back down to his lips in a hug. They made out for a bit, content by the other's touch and presence._

_Itching to move on, Kise struggled to take off his own shirt, parting only to throw it off his neck and onto the floor, and then to move on to Tooru's shirt. Tooru lifted his arms to assist Kise, kissing him wherever on his face and neck that he could reach._

_Once they were both shirtless, Tooru ran his fingers up and down Kise's chest and around to his back, trying to feel every part of him. He could feel his muscles moving underneath his touch. Shifting his hands down further, he worked to unbutton Kise's pants, Kise mimicking him with his own._

_Sliding off the last of their clothes, Kise pushed Tooru down and straddled him on the bed._

_"Looks like you're excited," he murmured, grinning. He flicked Tooru's hard-on mockingly. "You're quite the pretty one aren't you."_

_"You too," Tooru gasped, reaching up to touch Kise as well._

_Kise leaned down to hover just above Tooru's lips: "We have all night, you know; you don't have to be in such a rush, Tooru."_

_"Call me by my name again."_

_"Tooru." He leaned down to kiss him on the lips a few times._

_"Yeah, like that." A few more kisses._

_"Call me by my given name too."_

_"Ryouta?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"Ryout-_ ah _." Tooru felt recognizable pleasure at his groin when Ryouta ground down, rubbing the two of them with his hand. They kept on moving together, pacing it to stretch out the feeling for longer._

_Before Tooru was even near to climaxing, Ryouta pulled away and crawled over to a night dresser, finding what he needed inside._

_"What are you doing?" Tooru asked, rolling over to his side to watch him._

_"Moving on."_

_"What do you mean?" He got his answer when Ryouta turned around and stuck his finger inside a circle created by his other index finger and thumb._

_Tooru propped himself up on his elbows: "Wait, what?" Ryouta didn't answer as he pulled out a condom and some lube onto the bed. Tooru finally processed what was going to happen. "Wait,_ what? _There?"_

_"Yeah, where else?"_

_"Um, isn't it not supposed to go in there?"_

_"There's a pressure spot in there that's nice."_

_"Isn't it dirty?"_

_Ryouta stared at him: "Not really. Did you shower?"_

_"Wait... I'm taking the girl's role? Since when?"_

_"Um well, I took the dominant role last time, and I have experience with it," he admitted sheepishly, "I was going to take it so it can go as flawlessly as I can make it."_

_"Did you avoid saying painful?"_

_"I did. I'll take it slow though, don't worry; I've done it before. I promise you can fuck me any time as soon as you get how it's done."_

_"... Alright." Tooru was still hesitant about the whole ordeal, yet still placed his trust with Ryouta. "I showered after the game at the gym, is that enough?"_

_"Yeah. I still have this too if you're really that worried." He held up the condom. Climbing back over, he prepped some lube onto his finger and moved down to where Tooru's ass was, kissing his thighs in reassurance._

_"This is really embarrassing. I don't know how the girls even manage it," Tooru admitted, covering his face._

_"Is this better?" Ryouta moved up to where Tooru was and moved his hands away to greet his lips again._

_"Yes." Slowly, Ryouta pushed a finger in. "No offence to all your reassurance but this feels really weird."_

_"Wait hold on."_

_"It surprisingly doesn't hurt with the lubricant but it still feels damn weird."_

_"Just relax."_

_"Still feels weird-_ oh shit. _" Ryouta must have found what he was searching for, because whatever his fingers brushed on made Tooru want him to continue. "Fuck."_

_"There?"_

_"Fuck yeah holy shit. Keep going."_

_"Are you sure?"_

_"Please." Ryouta continued to add more fingers, Tooru gradually becoming more relaxed around him._

_"Wait, aren't you going to stick..._ it _in too?"_

_"Yeah, just give me a sec." Ryouta pulled out and moved to prep himself._

_"Hurry up," Tooru pouted._

_Ryouta came back over, moving Tooru to align himself up with him. Tooru had put his arm back over his face and mouth. Slowly, Ryouta started to push himself in._

_"Oh, fuck."_

_"Hurts?" Ryouta stopped where he was._

_"Yeah, like a bitch."_

_"Should I stop for now-?"_

_"No, keep going," Tooru shook his head, "You're almost in, right?"_

_"We have all night."_

_"I'm fine with the pain, it almost even makes the pleasure... more."_

_"Are you an M, Oikawa Tooru?"_

_"Maybe I am. What are you going to do with that piece of information, Ryo-chan?"_

_"I'll work with it later, I guess. We have all night, don't we?"_

_"I still need to be able to play volleyball tomorrow."_

_"Mhm. I'm all the way in now."_

_"I'm good, you can move- ah." Tooru turned his face away, panting into his arm._

_"Can't I see your face?"_

_"Come down here and kiss me then, Ryouta," Tooru insisted breathily, wrapping his arms around him and pulling him down and gasping into their kiss as Ryouta fucked him._

_"You have such a pretty voice, Tooru, don't restrain it. Hey, Tooru, what do you think?"_

_"So fucking... good, Ryouta... so fucking good."_

* * *

Tooru had to focus a little bit to see Sugawara's face on the figure moving on top of him. Sugawara was riding him, hiding his voice behind his hand, eyes closed.

He wanted to feel sad, knowing that what was probably the last of his memories had just been remembered and that was going to be it for Kise Ryouta, but he could still almost feel what he did back then, just thinking about it. That's why he was fucking Sugawara in the first place; for closure. 

Grabbing Suga's hips suddenly, he turned him over so that he could fuck him into his bed harder and quicker than before. Sugawara did not protest, and rather began letting his voice escape him a little more than before. Just before either of them finished, Tooru was sure he heard Sugawara mumbling _Daichi_ repeatedly until he climaxed. It surprisingly didn't take a lot for Tooru to not care.

He started cleaning up, reaching for his clothes. Sugawara watched him from his own bed, watching him put his boxers on.

"Kindly do not be as cruel as to leave right now." Tooru glanced back to see Sugawara staring at him, blank.

"I have to leave tomorrow."

"In the afternoon."

"... When did I tell you that?"

"When I texted you about the party." 

Tooru didn't answer, pausing briefly before crawling back into the bed. As he got comfortable, Suga snuggled up beside him and up against his chest.

"Are you cleaned up enough?"

"Yeah." 

"Alright."

"Sorry, my words may have slipped near the end. Dick move."

"S'fine."

"Did you have a change of heart or epiphany or something? Near the end."

"Memory came back."

"... Oh. Sorry."

Both fell silent, becoming drowsy. Tooru could feel Sugawara's soft breaths against his bare chest, and sometimes he'd curl up even more in his arms. Honestly, what was Sawamura thinking; he would be lucky to have someone like Sugawara.

Tooru tried to fall asleep as quickly as he could, leaving pointless thinking for tomorrow on the train back to Tokyo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry if the pacing was a lil weird  
> ngl im at the peak of my aceness rn and havent written smut in a while so that last part was... interesting to write to say in the least lmao
> 
> aight so next chapter is definitely going to be a lot shorter this time, so hopefully going to be out even quicker if it doesnt interfere with exams (because if you didn't notice, the chapter numbers increased, which basically means the next chapter was supposed to be at the end of this one lol) (you know,,, unless i die since that Hockey Game is happening and if the oilers lose our whole city is probably going to burn down so)
> 
> [my tumblr](http://universalsatan.tumblr.com/)  
> [writing blog](http://celestialberries.tumblr.com/) (for updates)
> 
> oh yeah lmao i almost forgot: kise and bokuto have the same seiyuu/voice actor lmao (Ryouhei Kimura)


	3. Reunion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe

One year. 

It had already been a year since the sports festival, his grandmother's death, and meeting Kise.

Kise Ryouta was now a resident of the back of Tooru's head, whose memory would sometimes appear and give him vague nostalgia. It was in the past now, and barely stung if Tooru ever recalled any of those memories. Ryouta was but an old face now, a crush that he obsessed over pointlessly at one point and now didn't bother to think about anymore. 

Tooru had, in fact, completely put aside any romance in his life at the moment, and had decided to completely focus on his studies and volleyball for the time being. Any girlfriends previous had only complained at least at some point about his dedication and attachment to volleyball compared to them, so there was no point in dealing with someone like that if it was only going to pull him back.

It was summer break, and since his volleyball club wasn't going anywhere this time, he had made plans to visit Iwaizumi at his university in Kyoto. It had been a while since he had seen his childhood friend, and constant Line messages and Facetime calls really just didn't suffice.

As the train was arriving to the station, he checked any new messages he had perhaps gotten while he began into the city. Tooru didn't manage to get that far, however, as it was pouring rain outside. He opted to stay inside the building for warmth, yet in a place Iwa-chan would easily be able to hopefully spot him.

The only new message he had was from Sugawara, which was solely a picture of Sawamura at a bar somewhere, them both holding hands over the booth table. Tooru was happy for them, granted, but it still left him with a little bit of a bittersweet feeling, considering their history connected behind that. He was still proud of the bravery of Sugawara though to come out to Sawamura like that and by some miracle have that get them to dating each other. Especially since this was all announced to Tooru over text a few weeks after he came back to Tokyo.

Sugawara wasn't the only one either: Kuroo's girlfriend had broken up with him, and when his childhood friend Kenma was visiting to see the university but also to console his heartbroken friend, one of them ended up saying something and now they were both dating as well. Tooru was even suspecting something going on between Bokuto and his highschool friend Akaashi. All of his friends were happily in relationships, which would have probably ticked Tooru off since he was the only single one, however, he had decided to concentrate on other matters and that was that.

Tooru glanced up to check if Iwa-chan had arrived yet, and thankfully, he could see his familiar figure jogging towards the station with a large umbrella in the rain. Pocketing his phone away, he waved Iwa-chan's attention over to where he was standing.

"Long time no see, Iwa-chan," Tooru smiled brightly, hugging his friend tightly. 

"You didn't bring that much. Are you sure you're going to be okay?" Iwaizumi gestured at the backpack Tooru was wearing.

"I can always borrow some of your stuff if I need to."

"Like hell you will, Shittykawa." They both stared at each other for a few seconds before bursting out into laughter. Iwaizumi punched his arm affectionately. "Missed you."

"I missed you too."

"My schedule just felt too free without having to hassle anyone."

"Shut up."

"So... did you bring an umbrella?"

"Er..." Tooru grinned sheepishly, glancing pleadingly towards his friend.

"Fine, you can use mine too, but I'm holding it."

The two of them set off to Iwaizumi's apartment together. Both caught up on what they could with their lives, which proved to be more difficult than they thought as they already kept up with each other through Line and Facetime. While the rain didn't get any harsher, it refused to let up, and soaked their shoes and their socks. Nothing could have dampened their mood from just being able to be with each other again though.

"Hey, I don't actually have much at home right now, but I have a few extra yen and you aren't carrying that much - wanna go out to eat?"

"That sounds great! I'd love to, but I can also pay-"

"Don't bother," Iwaizumi shook his head, "My treat. And you're the guest. I know of a really good yakiniku place about a block away from the apartment."

"Perfect, sounds great!"

"Hey, is that Shintarou?"

"Who?"

"My roommate," Iwaizumi pointed to a tall guy with strangely green hair and glasses. He was walking a ways away with a guy of similar height with blond hair, but wearing a hood. Both were carrying their own umbrellas. "He's almost stranger than you are. It's a good thing I can handle people like you now. Good for business."

"Is your roommate also in business?" Tooru was trying to get a better look at the pair, however, they were still walking slowly about a block away, and the rain only made it harder for him to see - even misting up his glasses. 

"No he's in engineering. He has a few friends in business though."

"Oh that's pretty... cool-" His voice died completely in his throat. He had stopped walking completely, and while Iwaizumi was still in motion, the umbrella left Tooru's head and he gradually became even more soaked. 

"Oikawa? Are you okay?"

"No... it can't be..." Tooru mumbled helplessly to himself. He could hear his heartbeat grow faster and faster in his ears, and he couldn't move at all. He needed to do something, anything. What happened to all those thoughts of what he'd do if he had another chance?

The blond person laughed, and no doubt it was him. Him, where there was no one else on the street except for the four of them. Tooru felt a huge wave of emotion he had never felt before crash over him and make him dizzy. Memories that had become a distant past washed over him with a heavy burden they had somehow been hiding, pushing Tooru to move more than ever now.

And that's exactly what he did. His legs started moving before his head caught up, not noticing the weight of his backpack on his back or the rain sliding down his glasses. He was moving faster and faster, desperate to not be slowed down by some opposing force like before, ignorant of any puddles in his way. 

Only when Iwa-chan had shouted after him _'Bakakawa, where are you going?'_ had He turned around to see Tooru approaching, running towards him. Tooru watched the features in his face change rapidly, as he started running towards Tooru as well, so they could meet in the middle of each other's path. They barely noticed Midorima and Iwaizumi meet over at the side and chat amongst themselves.

Without any hesitation or questions, they ran into each other's arms, Kise's umbrella covering Tooru's head and kept him dry once again. They hugged each other tightly and twisted around in each other's arms. All of Tooru's feelings were flooding out at once, and he could even feel tears leaking out onto Kise's shoulder as he held him even tighter. Hopefully Kise wouldn't notice, as Tooru was already drenched enough as it was. 

"I thought I fuckin lost you," Kise mumbled, kneading Tooru's hair.

"Shit, Ryouta, I thought I lost you."

"But you were the one that left me."

Tooru pulled away briefly to look Kise in the eyes: "My grandmother died." He gripped Kise's arms tightly, as if he would let go anymore Kise would disappear again. 

"Oh, shit, I'm so sorry." They were pulled back into an embrace.

"I'm fine now. It's been a year."

"God I've missed you so much."

"I bet I missed you more."

"Untrue."

"... I tried forgetting so many times, but I just couldn't."

"Me neither." Kise pulled away slightly as he struggled to get something out of his jacket, and eventually pulled out a chain that he had been wearing. On the chain, there was a very small sealed vial with a small, purple, papery-like thing inside. 

"This is what I found after you left. A-"

"The Myosotis!" Tooru interrupted, grinning uncontrollably at the thought of Kise keeping something of his with so much care, "My sister had them in her shop at the time, and I used a few for bookmarks, no wonder I couldn't find my spot in that one novel I was reading at the time..." he babbled on, quieter once he saw the look on Ryouta's face.

"Forget-me-not."

The earth froze outside of their little atmosphere. The world could have been spinning around them, but Tooru kept his eyes on Ryouta's and didn't move an inch. He could feel more tears sliding down his face, filled with regret and happiness and so much emotion that he would never have believed possible to feel in one moment of time.

It all happened in one smooth movement, but Ryouta had moved his umbrella up to shield them from the rest of the world as he leaned in and kissed Tooru. The kiss was so sweet and so soft that he thought he'd melt right on the spot as he kissed back. The desire this time was so pure and full of love that it made his head spin and heart flutter. 

The kiss itself was short, but it was one of greeting and promise. It comforted Tooru in a way that he knew he didn't have to let it slip through his fingers again as it had before. Their foreheads touched as they talked between themselves, Kise's fingers kneading through Tooru's hair.

"Are you crying, Oikawa Tooru?"

"Shut up. You're totally crying too." Tooru wiped his face with his arm, only making it even more wet if possible from the rain.

"Not as much as you are." 

Tooru hugged him tighter into his arms, and Ryouta buried his head into Tooru's shoulder.

"I'm never letting go of you ever again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and that's it for the fic! one more chapter, I realize, but that is supposed to be an epilogue
> 
> in fact, i would love it if yall wanted to approach me via the comments here or my tumblr if yall have any long-distance oikise headcanons! i have no idea how long or short the chapter will be (or approx when it will come out), but it'll basically be a fluffy long-distance chapter since they gotta unfortunately stay apart as they finish their studies. any hcs that yall have i would be very appreciated and ill try my best to add them into the chapter :^)
> 
> also, according to wikipedia, myosotis symbolizes true love :-)
> 
> [my tumblr](http://universalsatan.tumblr.com/)   
>  [writing blog](http://celestialberries.tumblr.com/)


	4. Restart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Epilogue

Sheets that rustled as soon as Tooru moved a muscle. Warmth that should've been uncomfortable but was actually rather pleasant and soothing at the moment. A fresh scent hanging in the air - mingling with some strangely familiar perfume that he'd possibly smelt before, which smelled nice.

This is what Tooru had first encountered when he woke up that morning.

Groaning, he rolled over and away from the warmth. A rather muscular arm was draped over him, but other than the duvet covering the rest of his body, he wasn't restricted in any way. Outside of the comfort, it was rather bright, so he had to blink a few times before he could concentrate on the alarm clock on his nightstand. _7:39_. Too early.

Sighing, he rolled onto his back once again. His movement disrupted the owner of the arm's sleep, who began moving a bit in his spot and muttering something. Tooru wiggled his arms free to grab his glasses off the nightstand and struggle to put them on his face, nicking his phone as he snuggled back into the warmth of the guy's arms and duvet.

"Oicchi, why do you always wake up so early..." the man mumbled, tightening his grip around Tooru slightly and nuzzling into his side, "Ow! Bright!" Both were blinded as he tried to turn his phone on, so he struggled to put the brightness all the way down. There weren't any messages, so he almost put it down before he stared at the time again. 

"Oh, shit," Tooru groaned, rolling out of bed suddenly and stumbling across the room. He started to try packing his possessions into a bag and search for something decent to wear amongst the clothes thrown around the room. "I'm so sorry, Ryo-chan."

"What is it?" He sounded amused. Tooru glanced back quickly to see Ryo-chan propped up on an elbow, his eyes following his every move.

"I'm going to be late... for work..." 

Ryo-chan still didn't say anything, yet Tooru felt slightly unnerved by his stare and tone. 

"What is it?" he turned around, slightly irritated.

"It's Saturday," Ryo-chan burst into a fit of small giggles, covering his mouth with a pillow.

"You little shit," Tooru muttered, throwing the clothes in his hands off to the side before running and jumping back into bed. Ryo-chan pulled the covers back on top of the two of them before he was tackled by his boyfriend. "Kise Ryouta, how dare you don't tell me earlier." He rolled off to the side, his arms still around Ryouta. 

"It was really funny."

"You won't be getting away with it next time," Tooru smirked, poking his face gently. "I'm still tired."

"Let's sleep in then."

"Alright." Tooru loosened his hug as Ryouta snuggled up to him. 

Being in each other's arms was the safest place in the world.

* * *

_Tooru checked his bags for the millionth time, making sure he had every last thing he needed packed and ready to go. Nothing of importance was to be left behind. His dorm bed was bare, and numerous suitcases were clogging up the doorway._

_School was finally done, he had received all of the education he had needed, and was set to leave forever. Tooru had booked a train ticket to Kyoto as soon as he could possibly get one to meet and live with the love of his life. Ryouta and himself had found a nice little home on the outskirts of town that Ryouta had already began to stay in. They had talked about their future endlessly into the night over Facetime calls, one of them usually falling asleep before the other has to end the call._

_The train didn't leave until tomorrow though. Oikawa Tooru still had one more night in Tokyo. One more night that he had to be separated from Kise Ryouta._

_Tooru already had his outfit planned out for the next day, laid out and organized neatly on the top of the dresser so he could grab it quickly tomorrow. He had reorganized and fiddled with it constantly during the entirety of the afternoon, as he had been doing with the rest of the suitcases. The dorm itself was spotless as he cleaned everything a thousand times to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything._

_Checking his succulent that was sitting on his windowsill, he felt the soil and its moisture, as he had just watered it a few hours before. It had thrived all the years he had been studying since he brought it back with him in his second year. He would bring it onto the train with him._

_Restless and with nothing else to do, Tooru flopped back down onto his bed. With his phone plugged into the wall beside him, he went through all of his notifications, keeping his eye warily on the time. Time wasn't passing fast enough, yet there was no way he could go to sleep now._

_The second it hit 22 hours on the clock on Tooru's phone, Tooru exited the app he was currently on and went to the Facetime app, scrolling to find Kise's name in his contacts._

_Just before he could press on his name, however, he received a call. The caller ID told him it was Ryouta. Tooru stared at his name for a second or two before picking up._

_"Hey babe," he mumbled into the phone._

_"Hey, Oikawacchi."_

_"... I missed you."_

_"We face-timed last night," Ryouta laughed, his voice crackling slightly through the connection of the phone._

_"I knowww," Tooru whined, "I wanna see you."_

_"I wonder when that will be?"  he joked._

_Tooru pouted: "I'm serious. I was going to Facetime you. You called me."_

_"Yeah I did."_

_"Why not Facetime?"_

_Ryouta was silent for a few beats, searching for what to say before speaking up again: "I'm tired, and I will get to see you tomorrow. I-" he lowered his voice to even more of a whisper than before, "To be completely honest, I want to have seeing your face again be more of a surprise. Saving it until later."_

_"You're refraining from seeing my face?"_

_"Um... yeah?"_

_"My perfect face? The person who was already complaining about not being able to see me when I was on the train back to Tokyo last time we saw each other?"_

_"Noooo, don't bring that up."_

_"Haha, I know you miss me too. Seriously though, the train had just left Kyoto back then."_

_"Shut up, Tooru," Ryouta groaned, "You're the one complaining right now."_

_"That's because at least I miss seeing your handsome face."_

_"I love you."_

_"I love you too."  Silence. "I can't wait to see you tomorrow."_

_"Me either."_

_"How was your day today?"_

_"Pretty normal, I guess. I've been cleaning the house mostly but it's been pretty normal."_

_"I want to cook something as soon as I get home!" **Home.**_

_"Uh, uh, no way. I already have supper planned for us."_

_"Aw, that's so sweet. Candles and everything?"_

_"... Maybe." Tooru began blushing, rolling over and snuggling into his blankets once he heard Ryouta's answer._

_"You're so romantic," Tooru gushed._

_"That's because I want to treat you."_

_"Next time it's on me."_

_"You can cook whenever you want. We'll be living together for now on." They paused for a moment, letting the dawning realization sink in._

_"I'll make breakfast for us tomorrow then."_

_"It's a promise."_

_"Definitely."_

_"You better, because I have work and have to leave in the morning, and when we were together you weren't that easy to wake up in the morning-"_

_"Um, untrue? "_

_"I'm surprised you're never late to anything considering the amount of time you spend on your hair-"_

_"Hey! You spend some time on your looks too! It's not all just the makeup artists!"_

_"Maybe not, but maybe I just wake up flawless already."_

_"But-"_

_"Can't argue, can you?" Ryouta laughed. Tooru sighed, running his fingers through his hair and shifting again on the bed. His phone was beginning to grow hot to his ear. "Hey, what time do you have to leave for the train again?"_

_"... 8 o'clock," Tooru mumbled._

_"It's getting late babe. You need a good rest. Sleeping on the train is not sufficient enough."_

_"Who are you, my mom?"_

_"I want what's the best for you."_

_Tooru pouted, even though he knew Ryouta couldn't see him through the phone: "First you don't wanna see my face, and now you want to end the call early?" ... "I'm kidding. You need to get a lot of rest too, okay?"_

_"I don't understand how you can be more childish than me sometimes."_

_"You've matured a lot."_

_"I guess."_

_"It isn't a bad thing."_

_"I guess."_

_"I like it. I love everything about you."_

_"I love you too. Get some sleep, Tooru."_

_"You too, Ryo-chan."_

_"After all, I'll get to see you faster the sooner I go to sleep, right?"_

_"Haha, yeah. Since when did you become so wise?"_

_"Since I met you, probably. I love you."_

_"I love you too. Goodnight."_

_"Goodnight."_

_"Bye."_

_"Bye."_

_"... I'm going to hang up now."_

_"Okay," Ryouta giggled, "Bye."_

_"Bye," Tooru whispered into the phone before quickly hanging up the call. Letting out a deep breath, he snuggled back under his covers and threw his phone to the side, setting his thoughts on falling asleep._

_Everything was going to be all right now._

* * *

The omelettes sizzled in the frying pan, the smell of breakfast wafting through the kitchen air. The rice cooker dinged, and Tooru moved to deal with it. There were some footsteps and thumps on the floor above him, moving across the level and gradually getting faster and closer as they thumped down the stairs. Tooru continued to watch the eggs without bothering to look behind himself.

Without any warning, hands wrapped around his waist and lips found his neck, kissing him sweetly. He smiled, and rubbed his head against Ryouta's.

"Morning babe."

"Morning. Smells good."

"Mm? Thank you."

"You're going all out," Ryouta teased, standing back up completely and tugging gently on the apron Tooru was wearing.

"I don't want to get my clothes dirty, and you shouldn't either," he threatened, waving the spatula dangerously near Ryouta's white button-up. Ryouta laughed and held his hands up, dodging the dirty utensil. 

"I told you I would get breakfast this morning," Tooru sing-songed confidently, moving to set the meal on 2 plates. 

"You still have the best bedhead I have ever seen though," Ryouta smirked, tousling Tooru's hair with one hand before retreating to the breakfast island. 

"Shut up - get used to it," he huffed, bringing the plates to the table so they could sit and eat.

Their meal was pleasant and casual, as was their chatter. Tooru asked about the shoot Ryouta would be working on today and which magazine it was for, and Ryouta then teased him about his severely mismatched alien t-shirt and pajama pants he had on. They finished, and Ryouta helped put the dishes away as Tooru began cleaning up. He ran around, trying to get everything he needed for work before meeting up with Tooru at the door again.

"Here, come a bit closer," Tooru beckoned, and took his tie in his hands, "I'll tie it for you."

"You don't have to."

"I've always wanted to do this."

"You look like a housewife now, look at that apron you still have on."

"It's cute, isn't it?"

"Of course. When are you going to start working?"

"I have an interview later today for the physical therapist position. I'm pumped right now, so I'm confident I'll do well."

"I'm confident you'll do well. You have experience too," Ryouta brushed his fingers against Tooru's leg, gesturing to his bad knee. Tooru had managed to play professionally when he was still in university, but due to overworking it as per usual, he completely destroyed it to the point he wouldn't be able to play professionally again. He was still pretty well known, and was looking foreword to searching for community volleyball groups he could play with every week. He was pretty much an old man now.

"Thank you. Don't you forget your lunch either." He handed him a wrapped and personalized lunch, to which Ryouta carefully set it in his bag.

"You know, I've always wanted a personalized bento like this," Ryouta grinned lazily, leaning down to kiss Tooru briefly. "You have a good day, alright? I'll be back soon."

"Have a good day," Tooru waved, smiling from ear to ear as he watched Ryouta leave around the corner. He couldn't believe how lucky he was, that he was going to be able to live like this for the rest of his life. Peacefully.

* * *

_The train to Kyoto was so familiar at this point that Tooru was able to count arbitrary landmarks that passed by outside the window on the way. By the time they had actually entered Kyoto, Tooru began to become restless._

_Time was passing slower than ever, and every single song playing in his earbuds took forever just to say one word. He already wanted to stand up and be off of the train, yet they were still due for the station in about 5 minutes. Tooru would even need help getting all of his bags off and to where Ryouta was going to be waiting for him._

_The train finally announced that they were arriving to the station, after what seemed for centuries, and Tooru couldn't stop bouncing like a child in his seat. The whole car was slowing to a stop, and Tooru was already up before it had completely come to a rest. He was grabbing all of his bags and fitting them onto himself as he had arranged them to before getting on the train. One last check of his phone that Ryouta was waiting for him, he tucked it away in his pocket and sped up his pace as he moved out of the train and through the station._

_Tooru was brimming with a thousand emotions at once, making him want to quiver with joy and squeal in excitement, but somehow managed to keep himself in check as he ran down the station halls. He even accidentally dropped a bag a few times, having to go back and fit it on himself once again before continuing with his travels._

_At last, he was approaching the exit doors, and he was desperately searching for the familiar face of Kise Ryouta. This was near to where Iwa-chan had picked him up before when he first saw Ryo-chan again, in fact._

_He finally spotted him: tall, blond hair, and designer sunglasses on, searching the crowd for Tooru. Tooru suddenly shivered in elation, stepping foreword with more purpose and speed towards his companion._

_It was only when Ryouta caught sight of him and started moving through the crowd of people towards him that Tooru ended up dropping his rolling bags and began sprinting towards Ryouta. They landed in each other's arms and hugged tightly as if they hadn't seen each other in years. Which was, of course, not the case, yet Tooru still had to miss his last break with him as he had to study hard for exams. This was still too long for either of them._

_"You're here, oh my god," Ryouta was beaming, twisting Tooru and all of his backpacks around in his arms._

_"I missed you so much."_

_"I'm so happy you're finally here. I had to wait for so long."_

_"Me too," Tooru was grinning uncontrollably now, "I'm home."_

_"We aren't even home yet. It's slightly smaller than you think, but it's still pretty nice. Don't forget the bags you left back there either."_

_"Anywhere is home when I'm with you, Ryo-chan."_

_"You're so cute," Ryouta poked him in the cheek, and Tooru stuck out his tongue at him._

_"You're very cute too."_

_"I know."_

_"Confident, are you." Tooru poked him in the side repeatedly. "I love you."_

_"I love you too."_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yall!!!!! I finished it!!! holy man!!!!!
> 
> >there was an idea of an extra chapter of what this story would have been like from kise's point of view, so this story may not be completely over, so keep your eyes open! (this will probably not be for a while as i have a crapton of essays exams and finals within the next week)  
> >there is a oikawa rarepair week coming up in july, and i have a whole fic idea from a while ago that i will probably write up for oikise for that (at least around 3 chapters). hopefully ill have it completely written out by then, but yes i'll be back ;)
> 
> thank you all for the amazing support through it all, even if there was drastic time periods between each chapter lol. i might go back and edit it a bit more, but i really like this fic and i hope yall did too
> 
> cheers xx

**Author's Note:**

> haha lol how was this ever supposed to be a one shot lmao


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